The Beginning of the End
by BookNerd7
Summary: When Max's parents perish in a horrible house fire, she is sent to Arizona to live with her birth father. Max's heart is broken and closed off from everyone. Fang, her next door neighbor, tries to break through. What will happen? A/U Fax On Hiatus!
1. How to Grieve

**A/N this is an all human story. As in NO wings. Might be a bit OOC.**

**Here are the ages: **

**Max – 17**

**Fang & Iggy – twins 17**

**Nudge – 12**

**Angel & Gazzy – twins 11**

**These are the main characters. When I introduce other characters I'll give their ages.**

**Chapter 1: That Night**

Max POV

Tears streamed down my face in a constant river, mixing with the rain pouring down. The world was a blur and I could barely see the procession through the misty veil that separated me from the real world. A sob rose in my throat but I forced it down, I would not cry again. But against my will my mind flashed back to that faithful night…

_Flashback_

_Laughter rang through my ears as we stumbled out of the cinemas. _

"_That was such a great movie!" Angel managed to say between her giggles._

"_It would have been better if Gazzy hadn't gotten us kicked out before we saw the end," I answered as we walked to the train station._

"_It's not my fault!" Gazzy responded instantly. "You guys are the ones who pelted me with popcorn and made me drop my bag, which set off the stink bomb."_

"_Totally, so even though you are in fact the one who made and brought the stink bomb to the cinemas, it's still not your fault?" I asked._

"_Of course not," He answered innocently and I sighed. It was no fun when the person you're arguing with, doesn't understand sarcasm._

"_Guys!" Angel's voice broke through our discussion, "This is our stop."_

_We stood up and made our way off the train. It was empty except for one person but I guess that was expected this late at night._

_I was lucky we were even able to go out to the movies. Mom had been nervous about letting us watch a late movie in the city but Angel, Gazzy and I had eventually changed her mind. She was probably out of her mind with worry anyways, she always was._

_We walked out of the train station and boarded a bus. It would take us just down the street from our house. I could feel a headache coming on so I leaned my forehead against the cool window, and tuned out Angel and Gazzy's bickering. I could just make out the faint outlines of trees against the dark sky and I closed my eyes, rocked into a stupor by the bus. This would be a long ride home._

_I was flying above the clouds as the moon shone down on me, illuminating the wings on my back. I looked back and there behind me were five other figures, flying in a V formation. I thought I could make out Angel and Gazzy's faces but Angel was carrying a dark shape. Suddenly the largest, darkest figure flew towards me. I couldn't make out his face but as he flew toward me I felt an overwhelming sense of l-_

_Sirens cut through my dream. A fire truck barrelled past the bus, lights flashing, followed by two police cars and an ambulance. I wondered whose poor house had caught on fire this time. Fires were common here and there had been two house fires in the last month. Calm down, I told myself. It's probably a house in the next street, but I couldn't get rid of the cold feeling in the pit of my stomach._

_The bus stopped. I looked around, we were here. _

"_Angel, Gazzy," I gently whispered and shook them awake. It was no surprise they were tired. They were only eleven and staying up till 3 o'clock in the morning is no easy feat. I could feel my weary eyes struggle to open and it took a lot of will power to leave the warm interior of the bus for the cold air and the walk that was still to come. _

_The cold temporarily shook me and I hurried down the street, Angel and Gazzy each holding one of my hands, struggling to keep up. It was a long street and we were right at the end of it around the corner. I blinked. There were no street lights but the night was lighter than it should have been. A loud siren once again filled my ears and I turned around to see a police car heading straight towards us. It stopped at the curb and the door opened to reveal a young police officer._

"_It's pretty late for a couple of kids to be wandering around," He said._

"_We were just heading home. Our house is right down the street." I answered and stepped closer._

"_What's you're address, I'm headin' that way myself and I can drop you there."_

"_15 Webber Crt," I said, his expression turned grim._

"_Are your parents Dr Valencia Martinez and Mr John Martinez?" He asked, his voice a monotone._

"_Y-yes" I answered, hating myself for stuttering but fearing there was a good reason for it._

"_My name is Officer Tom. You better come with me."_

_I climbed into the car, pulling the twins along. They had not heard a word of the exchange between Tom and I. It was hard enough for them to keep their eyes open._

_The ride was silent. As we rounded the corner to our house I let out a horrified cry. Instead of our small split level house was a pile of blackened wood and distorted plastic. Angel and Gazzy heard it and looked out too. Angel started to cry silently as we got out of the car. The air still reeked of smoke and I had trouble seeing. There were a couple of police cars off to the side but it seemed the fire truck and ambulance had left._

_I could feel eyes on me and I looked up. Officer Tom was staring at me intently._

"_What happened?" I asked him, my voice a grim whisper._

"_It seems a spark ignited and a fire erupted. Your parents, were, I'm afraid unable to escape and perished in the fire." He said quietly._

_My world seemed to blur and it was a second before I realised I was crying. It was an unfamiliar sensation. I was crying for the first time in five years._

_End Flashback_

It seemed funny that I hadn't cried in five years, but after that day it was hard not to cry every five minutes.

I felt a tug at my hand and looked down. Angel was staring at me with her blue eyes and I could see the words her mouth made even if I didn't hear them. _It's over._ She looked odd in black but so did Gazzy. They were used to bright and colourful outfits. I used to be the same. But now black matched my mood and I couldn't stand wearing anything else.

I walked over to the black car waiting for us and got in. Angel and Gazzy followed. We were silent but I could see the tears that had fallen in their eyes and that threatened to come again.

The car started. This was it. The end of our old life. The beginning of a new one. We were leaving this town and moving to Arizona to live with my dad. My real dad I mean. John was the twin's father. Val had divorced my dad and married John. Not that I minded. I hadn't very good memories of my dad. Jed or Jeb. I couldn't remember which. Not that it mattered. I knew the twins were hoping that he would be nice and caring. But all I hoped for was that he left me alone.

_this is a line break. His name is bob._

Fang POV

"_...a dreadful fire that killed two people leaving three children, without parents. The cause of the fire is still unknown but police suspect this was another arson attack, bringing the total number of arsons to six in that area in the past year…"_

The TV turned off suddenly and I looked up.

"You are not sitting around watching TV when there are hot babes to be scored." My twin brother Iggy said. He may have been my twin but we were nothing alike. Where I was dark he was light. And where I didn't talk, that was all he ever did. Mostly though, about babes, cars and bombs. Don't ask.

I shook my head and headed upstairs to my room. I wasn't in the mood right now. I opened my door and went into my room. It was completely black. Down to the carpets and the bedspread.I crashed on my bed and closed my eyes. I had been up all night writing songs for my band Black Night. Slowly sleep overcame me.

_I was flying in a group. My black wings were stretched out before me and the moon shone down on us. I could make out the faces of Iggy and Nudge but the other three figures were a mystery. Suddenly the leader of the group turned around. It was a girl and she looked around my age. Unfortunately I couldn't make out her face, but a she flew towards me I felt and overwhelming sense of l-_

A car backfiring woke me from my dream. My head still reeling, I got up and sat on my balcony. I was late afternoon. I had slept longer than I thought. As I watched the sun set I spied movement from the window across from me. The house next door was a mirror image of ours so I could see right into the room through the French doors. But nobody had entered that room my entire life.

Another movement in the window stopped my thoughts. A girl was sitting on a black egg chair opposite me. I could only see her blonde streaked hair until she turned slightly. My jaw literally dropped. She was gorgeous. I would have stared at her all day if she hadn't seen me. She smirked at my expression and got up and pulled black curtains over the windows.

I got up and fell on my bed. My eyelids closed and I fell asleep, a dopey smile still on my face.

**A/N Well, what do you think? Please review and feel free to correct mistakes.**

**Do you think Jeb should be good to Max or evil? I'm not sure yet…**

**Anyways… Max and Fang will meet in the next chapter….**

**Review!**


	2. How to Wake Fang

**Hey Guys, **

**Thanks for all the reviews. Me so happy…. Bit of swearing in this chapter.**

**I forgot the disclaimer in the last chapter. Grr… It's annoying**

**Disclaimer: Maximum Ride does not belong to me. There, I did it. Yay me!**

**Chapter 2:**

Max POV

Music pounded in my ears as I sketched. I didn't realise how much I missed drawing until I started. I let my fingers guide the pencil around the page. I didn't even know what I was drawing, but I was used to that.

A small alarm broke through my concentration and I looked up. The clock read 1.00pm. I groaned. I hadn't meant to stay up so late. I reached up to turn off the alarm and looked down at my drawing. A gasp escaped my lips. It was the picture from my dream. The dream I'd had every night since the fire. Six figures with wings were flying above the clouds as the moon shone down on them. Only three of the faces were drawn in though. I was drawn as the leader in front of a V formation while Angel and Gazzy flew next to me but the last three figures were unrecognisable, along with the black shape in Angel's arms. I sighed; it wasn't like me to leave stuff out of a drawing.

I got up and turned off the light cloaking the room in darkness. Light shone out from behind the black curtains covering the French doors and I looked outside. I was on the second floor of this three level house and I was able to bag the only room with a balcony. Jeb hadn't been home when we arrived but there had been a key and a note saying he was away on business and would be back tomorrow. I didn't mind though. The less time I was away from him, the better.

I threw open the curtains letting in the moonlight. My room was completely black. For some strange reason every room in the house was a different colour and this one just happened to be a black room. The floor had black carpet and the walls were painted black. I had found some electric blue paint in the basement when we explored the house. The walls now featured swirls and other designs in electric blue and my name was featured in paint just above the black bed. I did the same with my door so no one would mistake my room.

Other than that the room was pretty bare. There was a large, modern black bed with a plain black bedspread. A bare bookshelf was in the corner next to a weird black egg shaped chair by the window.

Before I would have complained about the colour and the minimal furniture but the black matched my mood, and I had to admit, it looked good. Angel had found a completely pink room and she'd filled it with soft toys that relatives had given her. Gazzy had chosen the room next door to her which was blue.

It was weird that we had each found a room that suited us but I wasn't complaining.

I smirked as I remembered the guy who had been staring at me earlier. The house next door was a mirror image of ours, so there was a balcony facing mine. I had been drawing the sunset in the egg chair when he went over to his balcony.

He had just been staring at the sunset when he'd noticed me. The look on his face was priceless.

That's was when I had closed my curtains, effectively ruining the view of the sunset…and the guy. Because I had to admit, he had been hot. He had been wearing plain black clothes that highlighted his olive skin, and his black hair was just long enough to fall annoyingly into his eyes. I hadn't really seen his face; I'd only noticed the expression. But I would bet my life that he was just as hot as his body. Not that I noticed.

God. I was trying to hate this place. I could not afford a dreamy little crush on the guy next door. I mean, how cliché is that. I walked over to my bed got under the covers.

I was so exhausted I fell asleep in minutes, but I couldn't keep my mind off the guy next door.

Fang POV

"Faaaaaaaaannngggg!"

I groaned. Why does that happen every Sunday? Iggy insists on waking me up by shouting right outside my room. Is it really that hard to come into my room and wake me up gently? But nooo.

I opened my eyes. The room was bathed in sunlight and I looked at the clock beside my bed. It was only nine o'clock. Why couldn't he just leave me in peace?

"Fang! I swear if you don't get your ass down here right now I'll…I'll burn your bacon!" Iggy shouted outside my door.

That got me out of bed. Iggy was an excellent cook, and eating burnt bacon when he was cooking was just wrong. I changed into my normal clothes, black jeans and a black tee. Nudge sometimes said that I needed to expand my wardrobe. I told her if she tried, I'd dye everything she had grey. That usually shuts her up. For a couple of seconds. When she and Iggy are in the same room I swear my ears are being talked off.

Music from next door pushed me out of my thoughts. There was the girl I saw last night. She was sitting in the egg chair again eyes closed. I brushed it off and went downstairs for some breakfast.

Iggy was waiting for me and he'd already set up a plate for Nudge and I. Our parents weren't home much so Iggy did most of the cooking.

I scoffed down the plate of food in front of me tuning out Iggy's talking until he mentioned the girl next door.

"Huh?" I asked my mouth full of bacon. He didn't burn it thank god.

"I was saying that three people moved in yesterday when you were asleep. Why you were asleep is beyond me when the cheerleaders from the other high school were doing a c-"

I cut him off. "They moved into Mr Batchelder's house? Why?"

"I heard the story from Ella over the phone," Nudge's voice startled me. She had appeared out of nowhere to sit next to me. "Apparently he had another daughter from a previous marriage, but her Mom and stepfather died in a fire last week. So she and her step brother and sister now have to move in with Jeb."

"Oh." I answered. There wasn't much else to say.

"I know!" Nudge practically squealed. In my ear. "We should go over and meet them!"

Iggy was nodding thoughtfully. "How old is Jeb's daughter?"

"17, she's in the same grade as you guys,"

"We should go over, maybe she'll be hot."

"She is," Oops. I hadn't meant to say that aloud.

"What? When did you see her?" Yet another squeal in my ear.

"Never mind," I said. "Let's just go over."

I walked over to the door and opened it. Back at the table Iggy and Nudge were staring at me.

"Coming?" I asked and walked out the door.

I smirked as I heard there hurried scramble from the table and walked outside.

We walked over to the house next door and rang the doorbell. Muffled yells came from inside and the door opened to reveal an adorable blonde haired blue eyed girl. Ugghh. Adorable. I need to stop using these words.

"Hi!" She said brightly. "My name's Angel."

"Hi Angel! I'm Nudge. We live next door. We came over to say hi. Hi!" Nudge answered just as brightly.

"Angel! Who is it?" A yell came from upstairs.

"You guys should come in. Max is still getting ready. She only just got up." Angel said, ignoring the question.

Nudge instantly ran in and took Angel by the arm and started talking a mile a minute. Angel looked a bit overwhelmed but smiled and started talking.

I looked at Iggy and shrugged my shoulders. We both walked in and surveyed the room. It was completely white through another door I could see the kitchen which was completely green. Weird. Even though Ella was good friends with us, we hadn't ever been in her house.

Loud rock music came from upstairs and Angel smiled.

"She's coming"

"Who?" Iggy asked.

"Max," She said simply and sat down next to Nudge on a white leather couch.

Max POV

I woke up the next morning exhausted. It was only nine o'clock but I was so tired. The sun shone through the windows and made me feel comfortably warm in my bed. I so did not want to get up but my stomach had other ideas. I hadn't eaten anything the night before and now I was feeling it.

After a hot shower I went back to my room and walked over to my wardrobe. It was a massive walk in wardrobe with everything I needed. It was fairly full since we had gone and gotten new clothes before the funeral. The main colour scheme was black. Angel had complained so I had picked out a couple of different coloured shirts too.

I picked out an outfit and put it on. I had to admit, black suited me. I wore black skinny jeans with a men's white button up top. Over that I wore a black jacket that was up to my knees and rolled up to the elbows. I wore black leather fingerless gloves and white chequered heels with white socks. A black hat finished the outfit. **(A/N link on profile)** It was nothing like I used to wear with bright coloured jeans and tops with smiley faces. But damn I looked hot.

I was just pulling on some silver hoops when the doorbell rang.

"Angel!" I shouted. "Can you get it?"

Her muffled yell answered me. I assumed she said yes. I heard the door open and a murmur of voices.

"Angel! Who is it?" This time no yell came back and I sighed. I put on some music and sat down. I was contemplating grabbing my sketchbook when my stomach growled. Oh well, I thought, maybe mom cooked some breakfast. It was only when I'd walked past the twin's rooms when I realised what I said.

I sat down on the floor against the wall and took a couple of deep breaths. Satisfied I'd pulled myself together I went downstairs only to find myself surrounded by strangers.

"Hi Max" A bright voice said. I looked around for the owner of the voice only to find myself assaulted in a hug. I peeled Angel off me and looked at the other people.

"Angel. Who are these people?" I asked her, there was just a slight edge of steel in my voice but either she didn't notice or she chose to ignore it.

"Oh. These are the neighbours. That's Nudge. She's 12. And those two are…" She looked up at them.

"I'm Iggy. He's Fang. We're twins and 17. Fang doesn't talk much." The guy called Iggy said. Fang nodded as if to prove the point.

I looked at them all properly this time. Nudge was a bit taller than Angel and had skin the colour of mocha and dark brown hair that had been tamed into two pigtails. She was wearing a bright yellow dress with frills and brown wedges.** (A/N Outfit on profile)** No wonder Angel liked her.

The other two boys were the same height but that was where similarities ended. Iggy was really pale and had white blond hair sticking up with black on the tips. It looked like he had been electrocuted. He wore preppy light coloured clothes. I stifled a laugh and looked over at Fang.

Who was…The guy I saw last night. Only this time I could see his face. He had olive skin and dark eyes like black obsidian. He wore a simple black outfit but he looked way better than Iggy. I shook my head. I should not be looking at him and describing all his hot features in detail…Crap.

"Ok then." I said. "I'm Max. I'm 17 too. And by the way, what the hell type of names are Fang and Iggy?"

Angel and Nudge smirked at my use of language and Fang's eyes held a sparkle of humour. Dammit.

"Well for your information they are nicknames. And you should talk. Max? Isn't that a guy's name," Iggy answered.

I put a cold smile on my face and walked over to him. "Well _Iggy,_ since you seem to find it so confusing, why don't you get the hell out of this house." I smirked at him and he flinched under my cold glare. I turned around and walked out into the kitchen but behind me I could here Iggy talking to Fang.

"You're right she is hot. Pity she's such a bitch." I heard a muffled sound of pain as if someone, cough Angel, had walked over to him and stomped on his foot, hard.

I smiled at that and went off to find some breakfast.

**Lol. Did you like it? I thought Max needed to put Iggy in his place.**

**Btw if you find it a bit confusing, Ella is Jeb's other daughter who is like 16. She's good friends with Nudge and she went on the business trip with Jeb.**

**They'll be introduced in the next chapter I think.**

**Max's and Nudge's outfits are on my profile. I wanted Max to still have a sense of style though not all preppy and girly.**

**Anyways, please review and tell me what you think.**


	3. How to Make Friends

**Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi. Hi.**

**Sorry, I just felt like being annoying.**

**Anyways, I'm so sorry it took so long to update… I was busy with school starting and the algebra test next week. Does anyone else hate algebra? But this week I don't have to go to school cause I have….. IT Camp. I know, how nerdy. But it's like fun, because I don't really have to do any work. And we were all like being random.**

**I see a little silhouetto of a man****  
****Scaramouche, Scaramouche, will you do the Fandango****  
****Thunderbolt and lightning, very, very fright'ning me****  
****(Galileo.) Galileo. (Galileo.) Galileo, Galileo Figaro**

**Lol. Bohemiam Rhapsody by Queen. Best. Song. Ever. It's also fun singing it in the middle of class.**

**Thanks for all the reviews guys, it made me happy.**

**Oh and btw. In the last chapter, Max was a bit happier cause she just got to this awesome new house and sometimes she like forgets. In the next chapters she'll be back to her old bitchy self (no offence). 'Cept maybe to Fang, Iggy and Nudge… Most of the time.**

**Swearing in this chapter… **_**Avert your eyes little ones!**_

**Here's Chapter 3: My Half-Sister**

"Mmmm… Iggy, I don't know where the hell you learnt to cook but you are damn good."

Yes, yes. I was back on speaking terms with Iggy. It only took him following me into the kitchen (limping), me slamming the door in his face, him trying to come onto me 11 times, me kicking him where the sun don't shine 5 times, 4 kicks in the shins and finally… a slap on his cheek. Hahaha. It even left marks. Yay for big rings. When he'd finally grovelled for mercy, I mean apologised, we were good friends. Albeit friends who slightly damage each other. And he insisted on making breakfast.

I thought Nudge and Fang were overreacting when he said that and their eyes lit up but he makes pretty damn good bacon.

Speaking of which, I reached for another piece. And grabbed thin air.

"Where's all the bacon gone," I said, horrified.

Faint replies came from everyone including "In my stomach," and "Your mom," Yeah. Real Mature.

"A loud knock on the door resonated through the house.

"I'll get it!" Shouted Angel and Gazzy simultaneously and ran out of the kitchen.

I sighed. Things like this kept on making me want to break down. But I had to keep it together. I couldn't just break down every time I saw something familiar. I mean imagine looking at chocolate chip cookies and just bursting out crying. It was going to be even harder at school. Oh God. School. From what I had heard from Nudge and Iggy (Fang didn't really speak much) the whole school basically consisted of sexist pigs, skanks, sluts and people who needed their asses kicked. Wasn't this going to be fun?

I was interrupted from my mindless rambling by Angel bursting through the kitchen.

"Max!" She gasped. She really needed to work on her stamina. "Jeb is here and… (Gasp) there's a girl with him who says she's his daughter."

"Oh. You mean Ella. I better go help her." I said leaving a stunned Angel.

Now most people don't know this but I actually have a half-sister who's a year younger than me. I met her couple of years ago. See my Mom left Jeb when I was still a baby and she met John and they got married and had the twins but the reason my Mom left Jeb was because he was having an affair and on my tenth birthday I found out that he had a daughter a year younger than me.

That was my tenth birthday present actually. I asked my Mom if I could meet her and we arranged a meeting. We'd become good friends and had exchanged emails but we'd lost touch over the years. The twins had never known about her though.

I walked into the completely white entrance hall and saw Ella and Jed. I didn't really like Jeb though he tried to change that. I still resented him for leaving us when I was so young although if he hadn't my mom would never have met John. He always tried to get on my good side by sending presents on my birthday and Christmas, never mind the fact that this was the first time I had seen him in 7 years. No doubt he would conveniently forget about all that.

"Maxie!" He shouted when he saw me. I rolled my eyes and groaned inwardly. Anyone who actually knew me would know that calling me Maxie would result in a trip to the hospital.

I sidestepped his hug and looked at him.

"It's Max actually. Or Maximum. Maximum Ride. You would know that if you actually knew me." I turned away from him and faced Ella.

"Ells!" I said and smiled. Even though we had lost touch over the years she was still one of my oldest friends.

"MAX!" She shouted much louder and threw me into a hug. "You didn't have to do that you know," She whispered in my ear.

"Yes I did Ells." I said with a sad smile. "Anyways thanks for doing the rooms, I didn't think you'd furnish them and everything.

"No probs. The rooms were already those colours anyway and I figured you'd want the room with the balcony." We started chatting about random things until the door from the kitchen opened.

"Hellooo," Said Iggy, "Did you forget about us or something. Hey Ells by the way. How come you never told us about your evil half sister?"

She blushed and mumbled something incoherent. I would definitely be questioning her about that later.

"Never mind that Iggy. Why don't you take those bags upstairs and everyone can come up to my room." I said and dragged Ella up the stairs.

"Whoa. I love your room. It's so much better than it was before. How did you paint all this?"

"Ella, careful, you're going to end up like Nudge," I countered. She smiled and jumped onto my bed and flicked through my iPod. Music blared loudly until she turned it down.

"Crap Max, how loud is that!" She said.

"Well, judging from your aggravated expression, too loud," We looked at each other completely serious before bursting out laughing.

"Oh, I missed you Max. I can't wait until school now, when I get to show off your bad ass attitude off," she said in between giggles.

"Oh really, how bad is your school anyway, and when do I start?" I asked.

"Tomorrow," she said.

I stopped laughing.

"You're not serious are you? I mean come on. Tomorrow?"

"Yup, Jeb said that it would be better."

I narrowed my eyes. "Why do you call him Jeb anyways, why not Dad?"

"I dunno, he always asked me to call him Jeb. Hey can I ask you a question?"

"You already did." I countered.

She rolled her eyes. "Why do you call yourself Maximum _Ride? _Why not Maximum Martinez, after your mom?"

"Well, on my 15th birthday, I asked if I could change my name, because I still had Jeb's last name. Mom said yes of course but she said now that I was older I could change it to something other than Martinez, so I changed it to Ride, after Sally Ride."

She looked at me for a moment and I knew she could see the tears in my eyes.

"You really miss them don't you?" She asked.

"Yeh," I said, smiling sadly. "I keep on forgetting about everything and just being jolted back to the present."

She gave me a hug and looked as if she was about to ask something but our sentimental moment was ruined when somebody knocked on the door. I got up and opened it to see the twins, and the other twins and Nudge. Okay that sounded weird.

"Is this your room?" asked Nudge. Angel and Gazzy smirked; they knew Nudge had left herself open.

"I dunno Nudge, considering my door has Max on it in giant letters but you never know."

She blushed and frowned before deciding to leave it.

I turned my back on them and jumped on my bed. I looked back and saw them still standing there.

"Are you gonna come in or are you gonna stand there all day?" I asked while Ella snickered.

Angel ran in and jumped on my lap. I'd been kinda distance lately and I think she was glad to my old self. Well not exactly my old self since I was a teensy bit bitchier and my wardrobe consisted of mostly black, but better than closing myself off. I gave her a hug and started fixing her hair. I couldn't really do hair but it reminded me of when we were younger before this.

Gazzy followed suit and jumped next to me while the others just ambled in awkwardly. My music had turned off a while ago so there was just an awkward silence.

"Soo…" I said, "Fill me in on this school that I apparently have to go to tomorrow."

"Well…" started Ella. "There's a massive group of sluts, led by Lissa, the queen of sluts, who thinks she rules the school. But she doesn't. We're I guess what you would call the populars, although we're not mean."

I groaned. "Really. It had to be you guys."

"Why what's wrong with populars?" asked Iggy.

Angel answered for me. "Max has been sued by about ten of them."

"Really, why?"

"Well, they might have been pissing me off and I might have accidentally punched them all." I said, trying and failing to look angelic.

Ella, Iggy, Fang and Nudge just stared at me for a couple of seconds before bursting out laughing. Well the others laughed. Fang just chuckled.

Angel and Gazzy just stared at them for a second before turning to me.

"Max, we're gonna go watch a movie, kay?" Angel asked.

I smiled. "Sure sweetie, just stay out of Jeb's way," They nodded and practically ran out of the room. I didn't blame them, these guys were weird.

Nudge finally regained control. Kinda. "What did all these girls do to you?" she asked.

"Oh, they weren't all girls. Actually most of them were guys. Only 3 of them were girls. I don't usually beat up girls. Unless of course they _really _piss me off."

The laughter stopped abruptly and they all stared at me.

"You mean you punched seven guys?" asked Nudge.

"Twelve actually, and it was more than a punch. Let's just say a lot of them won't have any children. With good reason too. It's just only seven of them were rich enough to sue."

Yet again, utter silence. I decided to explain.

"Well it wasn't exactly hard," I started. "I've done practically all the martial arts and I'm pretty good at kick boxing too."

Ok this wasn't helping.

"I won't beat you guys up of course, unless you _really _piss me off, and even then I won't hurt you too bad, since we're friends and everything."

I looked at their blank faces.

"I was joking, come on. I wouldn't beat you up,"

This was getting really annoying.

I got up from the bed and walked over to my iPod, searching for a song. I had a weird iPod. I didn't really have one kind of song. They were all different. I was busy trawling through my 1123 songs when I heard Nudge speak up.

"We're your friends?"

"Duh," I answered. "Why else would you be in my room."

She shut up.

Silence. Again.

"For god's sake you guys! What the hell is wrong with you?" I practically roared. I get annoyed easily.

They all jumped and burst out laughing again. I mean come on. Is it really to much to ask for to have a half intelligent conversation.

Finally their laughter died down and I jumped back on the bed.

"What the hell is so funny?" I asked.

Ella was wiping tears out of her eyes as she answered me.

"We're laughing because we can just see the impression you're going to make tomorrow."

"God help them all," Iggy said and looked up to the sky.

I smirked. They didn't have a clue what was coming.

**Yay, I finished finally. I kept on starting to write it and deleting the whole thing. **

**The next chapter will have Max starting school. Muhahahaha. **

**Anyways, I'm not sure how long it'll take for the next chapter since I have tons of tests and assessments due next week. Grrr…**

**Review please! Chocolate chip cookies for reviewers. And if I get enough reviews there might be a shirtless Fang in the next chapter.**

**Magnifico-o-o-o-o****  
****I'm just a poor boy nobody loves me****  
****He's just a poor boy from a poor family****  
****Spare him his life from this monstrosity**

**I just feel like putting that in there. I'm listening to it now. **

**REVIEW!**


	4. How to Throw a Punch

**YAYAYAYAYAY! I updated sooner than I thought I would. **

**Don't you just love me?**

**Anyways, I promised a shirtless Fang, and you shall receive…Crap I just lost my train of thought…Shirtless Fang….**

**I'm gonna stop now.**

**I kinda got a bit sidetracked though because I was watching anime. Has anyone seen Fruits Basket. Sooo Funny. But because I watched a couple of episodes online I ran out of bandwidth, so I have to update on my dad's comp. Grrr… **

**Here it is**

**Chapter 4: F*ck You**

Beep beep beep beep

I rolled over and put my pillow over my head, trying to block out the incessant beeping. It didn't work.

Beep beep beep beep

I reached out with my hand and searched for the alarm clock. It wasn't there. For some reason it seemed to be coming from in front of me.

I opened my eyes wearily and saw Angel standing above my bed with a smug grin on her face and my alarm clock in her arms.

"I knew if you managed to press the snooze button you'd never wake up. And you have to wake up. It's the FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!" Angel said, shouting the last bit right into MY EARS.

I groaned and rolled over again.

"I didn't want to have to do this Max but you leave me no choice," I heard her say. "Gazzy!"

I bolted upright and scrambled out of bed. Anyone who knew Gazzy, knew why he got his nickname the gasman. What can I say, that kid has a funky digestive system. And you did not want him to be the one who woke you up.

"I'm up, I'm up." I mumbled.

Angel ran up to me and gave me a hug and a cup of coffee. I smelled it, mocha, my favourite. It was kinda our morning ritual. She always got up really early and would make me a coffee, then wake me up and give me a hug. We'd stopped doing it in the past couple of weeks and it was nice to have a little familiarity.

The caffeine woke me up, slightly, and I finally registered the fact that Angel was jumping on my bed excitedly. I don't know how she did it. A full cup of coffee and I was barely out of dream world but as soon as she got up she was all happy and peppy and ready for the day.

It made me sick.

I walked over to my iPod and selected a loud rock song, and put it up full blast, I couldn't start my day without my music loud enough to annoy the neighbours.

A knock on the door was just heard through the music and I walked over and opened it to find Ella standing there.

"What are you doing?" She yelled over the music.

"Getting ready," I said normally and smiled. Angel jumped off the bed and turned down the music slightly so we could talk.

"You do realise it's only seven o'clock in the morning right?" Ella asked.

"Yup," I said popping the P. 'We used to do this every morning before, so you better get used to it. Want to get ready in here?"

She nodded and ran out of the room to get her clothes. Angel would always get ready in my room after she got dressed and it seemed like Ella was going to do it too.

While Angel picked out her outfit I had a quick shower and chose mine. I wore black skinny jeans, a black leather vest thingy with studs and a black cross on a chain, with black boots **(A/N image on profile)**. I wanted to give an intimidating image at school and this was one of my bad ass outfits.

I helped Angel and Ella pick out their outfits because for some reason they thought I was good at that. Ella wore white skinny jeans with a light blue tube dress and blue flats while Angel wore denim shorts with a flowery multicoloured tank top thing, bright pink sandals and a million gazillion different coloured bangles. (**A/N pics on profile)** I for one could not see how you could wear such bright colours and all that jewellery. Although I had dressed like them before I couldn't imagine wearing something like that now. They were all rainbowy next to me.

I sat on my bed sketching while they pottered around finding bags and books and other stuff. Angel was bad enough but with Ella they seemed to egg each other on to find the most tedious was to annoy me.

My bag had been packed the night before, since Ella had said it was important. HA. She should follow her own advice. I had found a black side bag with a skull on the side, at the back of my massive closet. Why I needed this closet I have no idea since only about half of it was full and it mainly consisted of skinny jeans.

I was really getting into my drawing of my room when I heard Ella clear her throat.

"Ahem… What are you doing sitting there? We have to over next door in two minutes," she said.

I looked up startled. "Why?"

"Because," she said sounding exasperated. "Iggy is cooking breakfast for us all then we're going in Fang's car to school."

"Oh…" I answered then got up quickly carrying my bag. Iggy's cooking can do strange things.

"GAZZY!" I shouted. He usually got ready on his own and stayed away from us in the morning. With good reason too. One morning he had walked into Angel with a drink in his hand and it had spilled all over her. He was pelted with hair accessories. Now he doesn't leave his room until I called him.

I saw his head poke out of his doorway. "Is it safe?" he asked.

I smirked and nodded. Looking relieved he walked out. He was dressed in simple jeans and a t-shirt but I could clearly see Angel's influence since the shirt was ironed and neat.

"Come on, we're going over to Iggy's for breakfast." I said and we walked outside. I figured Angel and Ella would be another ten minutes. They were so much alike it was scary.

We walked up to the door and knocked. Yells came from the other side and running could be heard. Nudge opened up the door and I surveyed her outfit in approval. She was wearing a brown and cream striped miso tie back top with jean shorts and a brown leather belt. She wore brown sandals, gold jewellery, brown sunnies and a cute cream hat. (**A/N outfit on profile) **

She smiled when she saw me and Gazzy and beckoned us in. I was surprised, I expected her to assault us with endless chatter.

We walked into their kitchen, which was identical to ours except it was white. Iggy was at the stove cooking what looked like pancakes, eggs, bacon (drool), omelettes and some other stuff.

"God Iggy, you think you could cook any more food." I said.

"Hey Max. I'm cooking for seven people. Four of which are guys." He answered.

"There are only three guys you idiot." I countered.

"Oh yeah," he laughed. "I guess you eat so much like a guy that I mistook you for one."

That earned him a kick in the shins.

"God Max, that freakin hurt," he groaned.

"Good,"

"Whatever. Breakfast is ready. Can you go get Fang, Max? Nudge seems to be preoccupied talking to Angel and Ella."

I hadn't even realised they'd arrived but through the doorway I could see them in an animate discussion, probably about purses, or hats or some other useless topic.

I nodded and left Iggy and Gazzy talking. It seemed they both had an avid interest in bombs. Great. Just what I needed. _Another _pyromaniac in my life.

I found the stairs and made my up to Fang's room. The house had the same layout as ours so his was in the same spot as mine, except opposite…

Even though that made no sense I could still tell it was his room, since the door was black and had Fang in plain blood red letters. Right. Not emo at all.

I knocked on the door, and an indistinct reply came from the room. I assumed he meant yes and I opened the door.

"Fang, Iggy says breakfast is re-" I faltered on the last word. Right there in front of me was Fang. Except he had no shirt on. At all.

And if I thought he was hot before, well, he gave new meaning to hot, without a shirt..

He was lying on his bed reading a book. He looked up and when he saw me he scrambled off the bed.

"Uh, hey Max… I was just reading…and I…well…" he stuttered.

"Umm… Hi. Iggy said breakfast was ready and he asked me to come up here…I better go." I blushed and walked over to the door.

'Wait!" he shouted behind me. "Uh… just hold on, I just need to finish getting dressed."

I nodded and stood in his doorway while he searched for a shirt. It seemed he had traded in his simple black ensemble from yesterday for a slightly different simple black ensemble.

I smirked. "Is that all you wear?"

"Huh?" he asked looking confused. "Oh, yeah basically. Nudge tried to threaten me into wearing some colour but I told her if she tried I'd dye all her clothes grey. She kinda shut up after that."

"I can imagine. Come on. Iggy made breakfast and I don't want to miss out on the bacon."

He chuckled and we walked to the kitchen.

Even though Iggy had cooked a lot of food, it was all gone in a matter of minutes anyways. I could get used to his cooking.

We chatted about meaningless things for a couple more minutes until Nudge suddenly shouted.

"You guys! We have to be at school in ten minutes!"

Damn. I was hoping they'd forget.

Apparently seven people can't fit into a small car. Well, they could but I don't want to risk being in a small enclosed space with Gazzy. So we walked. It was a short walk though. I mean come on. It could at least have been a long walk to spare me a couple of minutes of suffering but Nooo….

"Max, we're here," Ella said.

"I know that," I answered.

"So that means we have to go in."

"No thanks."

"Max," She said warningly.

"Yes?"

"Get your ass inside."

"Um… let me think… NO."

"Fang, Iggy. Little help."

"No, uh uh. I don't wanna."

Angel cut in. "Max? Can you walk me to the office. I don't know where to go."

Damn it. She knew I would do it.

I sighed. "I suppose I can. Come on Angel, Gazzy."

We walked inside. Behind us I could hear Ella whisper to the others.

"How does she do that?"

I smirked.

The office apparently is in the middle of the school. Simple? No. After getting just a teensy bit lost (did you know this school has a swimming pool _and_ tennis courts) we stumbled upon the office.

We walked up to the secretary who was sooo busy playing solitaire on the computer. Wow. I cleared my throat. She looked up, saw us and grimaced. Oh I just knew today was going to be fun.

"New students?" she asked.

I just nodded.

"Names?"

"Angel Martinez, Zephyr Martinez, Maximum Ride."

"Your real names,"

"Those are our real names," she flinched at the steel in my voice.

She typed on her computer and printed out our schedules, maps (I could have used that before) and some other stuff that I probably would need but I couldn't be bothered looking at.

"Thanks," I said sweetly.

She narrowed her eyes as we exited the office. And walked right into the others.

"There you guys are," said Ella. "We've been looking for you for ages."

"And it only just occurred to you that we might be here at the office?"

Ella sighed. I smirked. She was in for one hell of a day.

After we dropped of Angel, Gazzy and Nudge at another part of the school, we compared schedules. Ella, being the smarticle she is, is actually in our grade, so I had every class at least with one of them.

"Oh hell no," I said.

"What?" asked Iggy.

"They put me in choir. They must have gotten my old school records and put me in there."

"It's not so bad," answered Ella. "All of us are in your choir class."

"That's not it…" I sighed. "Come on, we're going to be late."

My locker was right next to Fang's. Great. The old occupant had painted it pink inside. I grimaced. That would have to change. The only good thing about it was it was near the cafeteria.

I was contemplating how best to obliterate the pink when an arm enclosed me. Mistake number one.

"Hey Babe, how bout we go outside and get to know each other," his graty voice penetrated my ears.

I sighed. I was hoping to at least get to my next class before going back to the office.

"Uh. How bout no,"

He turned me around and I was faced with a wall of brawn.

"Did you just say no."

"Yeah. Are you deaf or something." In the background I could see Fang, Iggy and Ella watching me with interest. Traitors.

"I don't think you understand. Nobody tells me no." He pulled me close. Mistake number two.

"Three things. One, I think I just did. Second, there is no way I would go anywhere with you. And third, if you don't let me go right this instant, I'm going to pound your ass into next week."

I smiled sweetly. He laughed. Mistake number three. I snapped.

A few seconds later, he was lying on the ground with a broken nose, a black eye and massive bruise on his stomach.

I stood over him. "Told ya,"

The hallway was filled with people staring at me. Shock was apparent on their faces and the traitors were having trouble concealing their laughter.

"What are you looking at?" I asked the crowd.

Everyone turned away and started whispering. I walked over to the others.

"Are we going or not?"

I have homeroom, Maths, English, P.E and choir with Fang.

So that was why when I entered homeroom he followed and sat next to me.

The whole class just stared at me as I sat down.

"WHAT?" I asked loudly. More whispering. God I hate being the new kid.

Fang stared at me. I raised an eyebrow at him.

"How did you do that?" he asked.

"Do what?"

"You know, before."

"I told you. Martial arts. Kickboxing. I'm used to dealing with guys like that." I answered.

He just shook his head and turned to the front.

The teacher entered and I knew instantly that I would hate him. He had oily skin, greasy brown hair and dark beady eyes. Mr Croy.

"Hello students, today we have a new student. Maximum Ride. Maximum would you like to come up front and tell us about yourself."

"No." I answered.

He did a double take. "No?"

"Yeh. As in _no _I don't want to come up. And it's Max."

"Maz?"

"No… Max. Sound it out. Maa…xx." I heard snickers from behind me and Fang's eyes sparkled in amusement.

Mr Croy's face went red. And red. And magenta. And finally a sickly violet colour.

Wow that was fast.

"Are you right there? Do you need a glass of water?" If possible he got even worse.

"Princ…ipal's o…ffice…now!" he shouted at me.

Well that was fast. Five minutes in and already back to the office. It was so obvious he wasn't used to dealing with people like me. Lucky him.

This time I used the map to find the office. It still took way longer than it should have. This school made no sense! Classroom 21 was next to Classroom 8. But I finally got here. The secretary from before saw me and pretended to be absorbed in her work.

Yeh, I could still see the games.

"Ahem…" I said.

"Yes?..." she answered.

"I'm supposed to see the principal."

"I'll just… tell her."

Then she pressed that button on the phone that sent a message to the phone in the principal's office. I wanted one. I could order Iggy to make me food whenever I wanted. Damn it. I was hungry _again._

"You can go in now," the secretary said.

I nodded and walked over to the big mahogany door and went in. Seated at a massive mahogany desk was a young woman who I assumed was the principal, although she was only about twenty five.

"Sup," I said and sat down in front of her. Then she did something that took me completely by surprise. She smiled.

"You must be Max. I'm Miss Bell. I got a call from your teacher explaining the…er…_situation. _It seems you were apparently rude to him."

"Yeh. You see he was trying to make me tell my private life to the entire class. I just responded as I saw accordingly."

"Well…. Since it's your first day, I think I'll let that slide but there is another matter to be discussed. It seems you assaulted one of the male students?"

"Well Miss. In my defence, he technically barred me from getting to class and… well… he basically was about to turn violent because I wouldn't kiss his feet like all the other saps you call girls here."

"Alright. I might let this slide too, but only because he has been known to be a bit… disrespectful to women here."

I smiled for the first time.

"Homeroom is nearly over, so I think I'll let you go, to get to your next class."

I got up and turned to leave.

"Oh and Max?"

"Yeh?"

"Nice punch, he's got a real shiner."

I smirked and left.

The next lessons were basically all the same. I went into a class, everyone whispered about me, I met all the teachers and occasionally payed them out. And finally it was lunch.

"I'm starving," I told Fang as we went to our lockers.

"Me too. Let's go, the others will already be there."

Our English teacher had insisted on keeping us in an extra ten minutes because we were too loud. Well I was too loud but that was beside the point. Ella was the teacher's favourite student so she got to go on time. Damn her.

We walked into the cafeteria and I was assaulted by the smell of food. I could see the others seated at a table right in the middle of the room. In plain sight of everyone. Great.

We walked over and the room instantly went silent, then erupted in whispers. A few wolf whistles came from the direction of the jock's table and I shot them the bird.

I sat down next to Ella and Angel. They luckily had the same lunch time as us.

"We grabbed you guys some pizza," said Nudge.

"Thanks," I said and we dove right in. The food here was pretty good. Better than at our old school.

"So Max, I heard you gave nearly all your teacher's heart attacks and high blood pressure," said Iggy.

"Iggy, you've got it all wrong. They just kept on asking stupid questions so I responded with stupid answers."

The whole table snickered and I surveyed everyone.

There was Fang, Iggy, Angel, Gazzy, Nudge, Ella and three others who I couldn't identify.

"Oh right Max. This is JJ, Dylan and Ari."

Dylan and JJ were my age and looked alike. Twins. They were both tall with tanned skin and turquoise eyes. Their dark blonde hair was the only thing different, Dylan's was short and JJ's was long and in a plait.

Ari was about Angel and Gazzy's age but he looked a bit smaller. He had dark brown hair and tanned skin. Interesting.

"So any news?" I asked.

"Apart from the fact that you beat up the school quarterback, gave Mr Croy an ulcer and basically got sent to the principal's office three times." Said JJ.

"Only twice actually. She's actually really nice. And yeah apart from that."

"Well, I heard Lissa wants to meet you,"

"Oh, really." I smirked. "Which one is Lissa?'

"The one heading towards our table."

I turned around to see a girl heading towards our table. She had bright red hair and freckles on her nose. She had obviously tried to look preppy, but to be honest, she looked like a slut.

She was wearing a tiny pink jumper that revealed her midriff and a skirt that looked more like a belt. To top it off, she wore thigh high pink socks. **(A/N outfit on profile) **

I sighed. Another confrontation.

She stopped in front of me and stuck out her hand.

"Hi Max. I'm Lissa." She said in a high screechy voice. I stared at her hand until she put it down.

"Are you lost?" I asked.

"Huh?" confusion apparent on her face.

"Do you need help finding your street corner." I said innocently.

Her face grew red as she digested my comment. "I am not a prostitute!" she shrieked.

I raised an eyebrow at her. "Could've fooled me."

Laughter came from the surrounding and even a 'Burn!' It seemed we had an audience.

She breathed in and out deeply, trying to calm herself down.

"I'm going to let that one slide, since your new here." She said. "I'm here to invite you to sit with us. You don't have to sit with people like _them._" Her eyes running over the others.

"You mean sit with those sluts. I'd much rather sit with my friends. So why don't you and your little friends go piss off."

I seem to have a skill at making people's faces go red.

"You're refusing _me. _To sit with these skanks." That did it. Somehow my drink flew out of my hand and spilt all over Lissa. Laughter erupted around me.

"YOU BITCH!" she shouted and slapped me.

The room went silent. I chuckled menacingly.

"You really shouldn't have done that." I said, my voice low.

"Oh Yeh?" she said.

"Yeh" I said nodding and my fist collided with her face. She flew a couple of feet and fell on the ground. I had purposely missed her nose, and instead gave her a black eye. In my experience, families are less likely to sue with a black eye.

"Don't mess with me," I said and turned back to my lunch.

The room erupted into cheers. I smirked at the look of shock on their faces.

"Crap," I said. "I need a new drink." They all started laughing as I continued to eat.

A knock on the door interrupted our history teacher's lecture and a small boy walked in and gave our teacher a slip of paper.

"Maximum Ride," he said. "The principal wants to see you."

I sighed and collected my stuff. Third time today.

I entered Miss Bell's office and saw Lissa sitting there, crying, with ice over her eye. I sat down next to her.

"Max, Lissa here has filed a complaint against you. She says you assaulted her with, and I quote, 'no reason whatsoever'," said Miss Bell.

"Miss, she was insulting my friends and she slapped me," I answered.

"After you, apparently, insulted her, her friends and threw your drink all over her."

"She deserved it, Miss."

Miss Bell sighed. "I'm not sure what to do with you, Max, On the one hand, you have caused a lot of trouble but on the other hand, you've had a difficult couple of weeks."

"She should be expelled! Or suspended at the very least!" cut in Lissa for the first time.

"Could you shut up Lissa, your whiny voice is grating on my nerves," I told her. Her face screwed up in frustration.

"Look Max. I'm going to give you a warning and call your guardian. But if anything like this happens again, I can't guarantee you won't be expelled."

"I understand Miss, can I go?" I said.

"Yes. You too Lissa, I need to make some phone calls. You can walk back together, you both have choir next."

I started to protest but stopped when I saw her face. I sighed resignedly and walked out.

The walk to choir was tense and annoying since Lissa wouldn't stop sobbing.

We walked into the classroom and I sought out the others and walked over. I ignored the questioning faces and looked to the front.

"Well now that those two have arrived, I'd like to introduce my self. I'm Mr Lazzara, I'll be replacing your old choir teacher. Now I'd like to get to know everyone's voices so I'm going to get you all to come up and sing a song for me," Our teacher said.

I groaned, along with other people in the class. It's not that I couldn't sing. Because I could. Pretty well too. I just didn't enjoy singing in public. But I suppose I could make the most of this.

"Who wants to sing first?" asked Mr Lazzara. No response. "Well how about our new student, Maximum Ride. Max?"

I sighed and got up. I went on the stage and searched through the songs until I found something. I smiled. This was going to be fun.

I stood in centre stage with the microphone and the opening bars to _Fuck You _by Lily Allenstarted. Looking straight at Lissa I started to sing.

_Look inside, look inside your tiny mind  
and look a bit harder  
cause we're so uninspired  
so sick and tired  
of all the hatred you harbour_

I strutted around the stage as I got into the song. My voice melded perfectly with the music and the notes came out perfect.__

So you say it's not okay to be gay  
well I think you're just evil  
you're just some racist who can't tie my laces  
you're point of view is medieval

I smiled. I had missed this. I stared at Lissa with a smirk on my face as I sang the chorus.

_Fuck you, fuck you very very much  
cause we hate what you do  
and we hate your whole crew  
so please don't stay in touch_

Fuck you, fuck you very very much  
cause your words don't translate  
and it's getting quite late  
so please don't stay in touch

The class stared at me open-mouthed, shocked that I would dare sing this.

_Do you get, do you get a little kick out of being small-minded?  
you want to be like your father  
it's approval you're after  
well that's not how you'll find it_

Do you, do you really enjoy living a life that's so hateful  
cause there's a hole where your soul should be  
you're losing control of it  
and it's really distasteful

I looked at Fang, to see his mouth curving up at the sides. My eyes connected with his and I nearly stopped singing. He didn't look shocked but instead completely amused. He had actually smiled.__

Fuck you, fuck you very very much  
cause we hate what you do  
and we hate your whole crew  
so please don't stay in touch

Fuck you, fuck you very very much  
cause your words don't translate  
and it's getting quite late  
so please don't stay in touch

Look inside, look inside your tiny mind  
and look a bit harder  
cause we're so uninspired  
so sick and tired  
of all the hatred you harbor

Fuck you, fuck you very very much  
cause we hate what you do  
and we hate your whole crew  
so please don't stay in touch

Fuck you, fuck you very very much  
cause your words don't translate  
and it's getting quite late  
so please don't stay in touch 

As the last notes petered out I bowed, walked off the stage and sat next to Fang. There was complete, shocked silence. Fang bowed his head and whispered, "Nice,". Humour evident in his voice. I smiled. He started clapping and suddenly the room was filled with applauding and cheering. The only people not cheering were Lissa and her little posse, who were giving me the death glare. Well their version of a death glare. I glared back and they flinched visibly.

Mr Lazzara cleared his throat and quieted down the class.

"Well, that was… interesting. Excellent singing Max." he aimed at me. "Who's next?"

One by one people went up and sang. Some people were good, some people were _really _bad. Especially Lissa. She sang Girlfriend by Avril Lavigne, not that I noticed. I was too busy blocking my ears.

Ella sang _Hallelujah_ by Kate Voegele, and it was amazing. Really sweet. Iggy sang _*shudder* _Hannah Montana. I honestly don't care which song. He wasn't bad though. And then…Fang sang.

It was amazing. He chose _Fall for you _by Secondhand Serenade. And he stared at me as he sang it. I blushed in girly fashion, well not visibly of course.

When he came off the stage I started clapping, and so did everyone else.

I whispered to him as he sat down, "That was amazing,".

He didn't say anything back but he smiled, a real smile, well it was still a Fang smile, but it was a smile. Butterflies flew in my stomach and I felt giddy. I shook my head and squashed it down.

I wasn't going to fall for him.

I wouldn't.

I couldn't.

**OMG…. That was 16 pages! That is the most I have ever written.**

**Did you like it? Yes I know, Max is being an idiot but still…**

**I recommend listening to those songs, except for Hannah Montana. No offence to fans. But still.**

**In this Ari is young and nice, like he was before he was transformed.**

**Fang POV in the next chapter I think.**

**Before I go, I need ideas for Fang's car and maybe Max's. They have to be black of course.**

**Review Please!**

**Thanks for reading…**


	5. How to Fight

**Hey Guys!**

**I am sooooooooooooooooooooooooooo sorry. I really meant to write up the chapter but I kept on getting sidetracked. On the bright side I handed in my English assessment… on time! Yes I am the procrastination queen, no need to remind me.**

**Thanks so much for the reviews. Reviews make me happy. **

**I got a bit more bandwidth so I can actually update, but not enough to watch anime. **_***sigh***_

**Hope you like this chapter!**

**Chapter 5: Sparring**

Max POV

Apparently, if you're principal has to call your guardian because you punched some girl, you _might _get in trouble. Just a heads up.

So now I am grounded. Have you been grounded? It is the most boring thing in the universe. Jeb took away my iPod, my laptop _and _my sketchbook. Damn him.

I wouldn't have cared anyways, and just ignored him but he also forbade me from going anywhere. Including Iggy's for breakfast. So I'm stuck in this freakin room. I swear, one day I will acquire laser vision so I can burn through walls with my eyes. And kill people. But that's beside the point.

And if that wasn't bad enough, I have to see a _counsellor. _I'm violent, apparently, and the principal recommended it to Jeb. She just went on to my list. Right beneath gravity and physics. I swear I didn't trip; the ground just hit my face.

So here I am, outside, in my egg chair, watching the sunset, missing out on a perfectly good meal. Grr…

The sun shined on me, and I could feel myself getting sleepier and sleepier…

"_I was flying above the clouds as the moon shone down on me, illuminating the wings on my back. I looked back and there behind me were five other figures, flying in a V formation. I thought I could make out Angel and Gazzy's faces but Angel was carrying a dark shape. Suddenly the largest, darkest figure flew towards me. I couldn't make out his face but as he flew toward me I felt an overwhelming sense of l-_

"MAX!" a voice shook me out of dream world. I took a moment to curse the person. Always that freakin moment.

"Maa…xxx!" the voice shouted again.

I opened my eyes slowly and was surprised to find out it was night. Fairly late too by the temperature.

I shivered and looked around. Fang was sitting on the edge of his balcony, and he smiled when he saw me awake. Well, more like the edges of his mouth turned up, kind of, just not enough for anyone to notice if anyone was looking. Wouldn't want to ruin his image now would we.

"Max?" he said again. Me being the idiot I am, had stared into space for a good two minutes thinking about nothing. Except Fang. With no shirt on. Wait! Forget I said that.

"Yes?" I asked. He seemed relieved to see me awake and not you know, in a coma like state.

He looked at me for a second before smirking, and then he climbed onto the rail and jumped over to my balcony. And that was not the most amazing thing. He actually made it.

My jaw dropped as he walked over to me. Well not literally of course because that would be letting gravity win.

He sauntered over to me and held out a blanket.'

"I thought you might be cold," he explained.

"And you couldn't have just shouted at me to get my ass inside?" I answered.

"Well, yes. But this way is more fun."

I looked up at him, his eyes were shining. Damn Fang, with his sparkly make-me-melt eyes, and his hot body, and his quirky smile, and his dark and silent attitude, and his thoughtfulness… Ok, listing all the things I like about him? Not Helping.

"Thanks," I said and turned back to the sky.

He sat next to me on the ground and looked at me. I turned to him, smirking.

"What?" I asked.

He shook his head and mumbled an incoherent reply. I budged over and cleared a space for him.

I patted the seat. "Come on, you'll freeze your ass off down there." He chuckled and sat next to me. We watched the stars shine in the sky and listened to the sound of the neighbourhood.

I distinctly heard someone, cough Iggy, shout about how he needed space and if Nudge didn't get out of his room, he would dye her clothes grey. Hah, stole that from Fang.

"So…" I said, trying to break the silence. It wasn't that it was uncomfortable, because it wasn't but because when we didn't talk I had more time to think, and well, sitting next to Fang on the balcony, kinda made me think about him. And I didn't want that to happen.

"I heard you were grounded. That's tough." He said.

"Nah, not really, apart from missing out on Iggy's cooking. The thing that really gets me though is Jeb is sending me to a counsellor. A _counsellor. _Can you see me sitting there talking about my problems?" I answered.

He was silent for a moment before he started chuckling.

"Oh a pity the person who has to deal with you." He answered.

"What that's that supposed to mean?" I asked with a pout. And I aimed a punch at his shoulder. Now usually when I punch someone, they don't know they've been punched until they're writhing on the floor. But Fang did something that took me completely by surprise. He caught my fist.

I cocked an eyebrow at him jumped out of the seat.

"That's how you wanna do it then?" I said, and beckoned him forwards. Now from what Nudge had told me, or what I think she had told me, Fang had been doing martial arts for a couple of years. That did not however, prepare me for him leaping out of the seat and aiming a kick at shoulder. I quickly dodged his foot and aimed a fist at his gut. Which he blocked and then proceeded to attack me. Now I have never, I repeat _never _met anyone who can match me in a fight.

So I was enjoying myself immensely as we sparred. I managed to get a few hits in, although they were pretty soft. Well I thought they were soft. Fang also managed to get in a few hits too and I was grinning as we fought.

It was probably the most fun I've had in a long time and we were both breathing heavily by the time we had exhausted our energy. I slumped down against my door to regain my breath, letting the cool glass soak into my skin.

Fang sat down next to me, taking deep gulps of the fresh air.

"That was fun," I said.

"Yup," he answered.

"Are you back to one word sentences again?" I asked, exasperatedly.

"Yup," he replied in true Fang fashion.

I sighed and closed my eyes. I heard yelling from inside my house, and I listened intently.

It sounded like Ella shouting, "MAXIMUM SKY RIDE! If you do not get your ass inside this house right now, I'll… I'll dye all your clothes pink!"

I stood up quickly, and was overcome by a wave of dizziness. Fang stoop up abruptly and caught me, holding me close to him.

I stared into his eyes, getting lost in the black pools. My eyes flicked down to his lips, and I leaned forward in anticipation… only to hear Ella crash into my room and start my iPod.

I pulled away quickly and mumbled a goodbye, before turning my back to him and going inside.

'Stupid, stupid, stupid,' I chided myself, and closed the glass door, only to find myself instantly bombarded with questions.

"Was that Fang? Why are you all sweaty? Did you guys kiss? Do you like Fang? Why didn't you answer when I called you? Why do you have a bruise on your arm? What…"

"Ella!" I shouted, stopping her mid question. "Way to pull a Nudge. First that was Fang, and we were practicing _martial arts. _I have a bruise on my arm because he actually managed to land a hit. Now if you don't mind, I am exhausted so GET OUT!"

I pushed her out of my room, and turned my iPod off, before crashing onto my bed.

I thought back to how bad I had wanted to kiss Fang, and the pure joy I felt when sparring with him. There was no doubt in my mind that I liked Fang. A lot. But I couldn't afford to like him. I needed to distant myself from him, no matter what it cost.

With that uneasy thought on mind it was a long time until I fell asleep.

Fang POV

I lay in my bed listening to the sounds of my family sleeping. I couldn't get Max off my mind, and I remembered the happiness I felt when fighting her.

It had been a long time since someone could match me in a fight, and according to the bruised on my ribs, she did pretty well.

I remembered after the fight, when she had stood up too fast, and had been overcome by dizziness. And above all, I remembered how it had felt when she had been in my arms, leaning forward to kiss me.

It was official; I was falling hard for Max. I like her bad ass attitude and I was intrigued by her skill at martial arts. I wanted to know everything about her, what she loved and hated, who she wanted to meet, what her favourite flavour of ice cream was.

I didn't know what to do though. I was used to girls flinging themselves at me, but I had a feeling I would have to work to get Max.

I groaned and grabbed my iPod from my nightstand. I chose a random song, and listened to it full blast through my earphones.

This way I wouldn't have to think about Max. Not her smile, or her kick ass attitude, or her amazing style or her total disrespect of authority… I groaned and smashed my face into my pillow, forcing all thoughts of Max out of my mind.

I relaxed under the covers, and was able to fall asleep, with rock music blasting in my ears, and thoughts of Max hovering on the edge of my consciousness.

**I actually finished. I' m amazed. Took me much less time than I thought it would.**

**Did everybody like the almost kiss. Max and Fang are finally realising they have feelings for each other, though be prepared for Max being a total idiot throughout the story.**

**Next chapter will be Max meeting with her counsellor. That shall be fun…**

**Anyways, Review please. Pretty please. Pretty please with a shirtless Fang on top :[**

**Yeh I knew that would work.**

**Till next time… **


	6. How to Get Counselling

**Hey Peoples,**

**Yes, I know it took a while to update, but I had a very busy week.**

**For all the people wondering why I'm in school, I live in AUSTRALIA, so I am in the middle of the term. **

**Here are some words on anime, since it wouldn't be a proper author's note without it.**

**Fruits Basket is awesome, and I love the manga too, and I love Yuki, yada yada yada.**

**Right now though, my obsession with Doctor Who has started to annoy my friends. A lot. Yes, I'm talking to you Ashara and Tracie. You got a mention. **

**Lots of swearing in this one.**

**Here it is**

**Chapter 6: How to piss of Max**

Max POV

You know what? All therapist waiting rooms look the same. The uncomfortable chairs, that look comfortable…but aren't. The old side tables with the crappy magazines from six years ago. Even the smell is the same. Faintly antiseptic, as if they are trying to prove they're real doctors.

Now I have spent a lot of time in waiting rooms like these. A lot. In my previous school, I was recommended to around eight therapists, as after the first session, they refused to see me. I wonder why.

So now I'm freaking sitting here when I should be at home, eating Iggy's food. But since I'm grounded, I not only did not get to have breakfast this morning, but the other's ditched me so I had to walk to school by myself. In the rain. Needless to say people avoided me this morning. I had my 'Piss me off and I'll send you to the fiery pits of hell' face on. It was quite funny seeing people rush out to meet me and then run away just as quickly.

Even the teacher's didn't mess with me. Not that I gave them much of a chance. I spent most of the day just sketching (I stole my sketchbook back) and glaring at any teacher stupid enough to try and comment. Being scary is fun **(A/N isn't it Ashara?). **Even my friends avoided me. So the whole day was spent alone, with everyone letting me stew in my crappy mood.

By the time of my therapist's appointment I was pissed. Really pissed. Rip my therapist's head off pissed.

The secretary in the office was this whiny little red head name Brigid. She reminded me of Lissa, and that was enough to make me fuming. The therapist was late, so I sketched.

Usually when I sketched I just let my mind wander free, and let my hand do the drawing, but now when ever I did that, I just drew my dream. Over and over again. Even if I tried drawing an apple or something it somehow turned into my dream. My subconscious was trying to tell me something. So I told my subconscious to fuck off.

"Miss Ride?" asked the whiny little bitch of a secretary. I was having a bad day. So sue me.

"WHAT!" I retorted furiously. She faltered.

"Ummm… Dr. Ter Borcht will see you now."

I smirked. This was not his day.

I strutted (Yes strutted, I'm feeling badass) into the office, but not before stuffing my sketchbook into my bag.

One of my therapists, who had tried to have a second session, saw it. And made me give it to her. And comment on how the pictures could be construed. She stopped seeing me when I broke her favourite china cat figurine in her office. It was a total accident. I swear.

I walked into the office and immediately noticed the colour. It was a _peach _colour. I inwardly groaned. I had to spend my day in a _peach _coloured office.

The second thing I noticed was the twenty-something guy sitting on an arm chair. He was hot. I guess. Nothing compared to Fang. I mentally bitch-slapped myself. Stop comparing hot guys to Fang!

I sat down on the leather couch (why do they always have a leather couch, although this one was more of a fake leather, and…_peach). _The therapist was tan, muscled and had brown hair. Now I probably wouldn't have minded the sessions as much, if he hadn't fucking leered at me. And stared at my chest unabashedly. I glared at him and pointed at my face.

"My fucking face is up here," I snapped.

He shrugged, he didn't even look ashamed. I gave him the full blast of the evil eye. He didn't even flinch.

My face set in a furious glare, he turned to me.

"Sooo… Miss Batchelder," He started to ask. I was fuming. You could do a lot of fucking bad things to me, but never. I repeat NEVER call me by my 'father's' name.

"It. Is. Max." I spat out. "Maximum RIDE. Call me by that name again and I will personally _rip you to pieces."_

He didn't even fucking flinch. He just wrote something down on a notepad and nodded his head. I wanted to scream.

"I see…" he muttered. "I heard a mention of your father's name is a common trigger for your anger."

I gaped at him. He had known my name. But he had purposely called me by the wrong name to get a rise out of me. Oh… I was breaking so much more than a china figurine when he left the room. And guess what he did again. He leered at me. Again.

"Look at me like that again and I will fucking castrate you," I said, my voice deathly calm.

He smirked at me. Freaking smirked. Okay here is the line between normal angry and steam coming out of the ears angry. I hadn't just crossed the line. I was miles ahead of it.

He started to ask me questions. Hoping I would answer I guess. Not a chance. I just sat there stubbornly till the session was over. As I walked out I could feel his eyes on me, checking me out. It took every single ounce of self-control I had to stop myself from going back in and pounding his face in, not to mention making sure he would NEVER have children.

As I walked out of the office, Brigid cringed and moved away from me. I didn't blame her. Not one bit.

Fang POV

I was sitting on my bed, trying and failing to keep my thoughts off Max. She had been in a shitty mood today. She glared at anyone who came near her, and ignored all the teachers, instead sketching in a sketchbook. The few teachers who had been foolish enough to try and stop her had been reduced to whimpering piles of patheticness (Hah, all poetic) by her sharp tongue, not to mention her withering glares.

A tap on the window interrupted me from my thoughts. I opened the French doors and was surprised to see Max standing on my balcony. She looked up at me and I nearly flinched away from her face. You know the rages the Greek gods used to get into, like earth shattering rages? Well, that was nothing on Max's mood.

She took a couple of deep breaths.

"Fang," she said steel in her voice before correcting herself. "Right now I'm not in the best of moods, so would you please fucking spar with me?" I raised my eyebrow at her language. Of course she was pretty mouthy all the time but not usually as forceful as now.

Instead of answering her I punched out at her stomach, which she blocked with her palm. She feinted to the side before launching a hard kick at my other side. I winced. Fighting Max in this kind of mood was so not a good idea. But there was no backing out now.

In a matter of minutes I was pinned on the floor, bruised and battered, panting for air. Max was barely out of breath and I hadn't gotten in one hit.

"Better?" I asked.

"No," she spat out angrily, and stood up quickly. I groaned as the pain in my limbs reached my brain. I raised my head just in time to see Max climb up on the balcony rail and launch herself to hers. I gasped and struggled to my feet. Not that I needed to worry. She landed nimbly on her own balcony rail and jumped to her door. She opened the door and slammed it loudly. I winced at the noise and went into my own room, but not before hearing the loud rock music pounding from next door.

Iggy poked his head into my room and looked at me curiously as I gingerly lowered myself onto my bed, wincing as I felt my ribs throb. One was probably cracked.

"Max is in a _really _shitty mood," I explained. "We sparred for a bit but fighting Max when she is angry is not fun."

He smirked at me. "Are you telling me you got beaten by a girl?"

"You fucking go over there and see what kind of mood she's in. I'm just glad the others are round here and Jeb is at work."

"Fine, I will." He said and left the room, presumably to prove me wrong. Not gonna happen.

I waited a couple of minutes before the door opened and then slammed shut. Iggy made his way slowly up the stairs and entered my room, favouring his…man business.

I smirked at him. He looked up at me in disbelief.

"I went round there and knocked on the door. When she opened it I asked if I could do anything to make her feel better. Then she kicked me here and told me she'd fucking castrate me if I went round again."

I chuckled but stopped quickly still feeling the cracked rib.

"Iggy, my advice is to leave her the fucking hell alone until she feels better. Better tell everyone else that too."

He nodded and left the room, and I bandaged my ribs and the worst of my injuries. I vowed to never ever fight with Max when she's in that mood.

Max POV

The next morning I woke up with a pounding head ache. My throat ached and my chest felt wheezy. But I had an agreement with Jeb; he gave me back my iPod, if I went to school. I even got to go to Iggy's for food.

So I stumbled out of bed and grabbed the coffee on my nightstand. Obviously the others were avoiding me because of my bad mood. I was grateful for it although my mood was much better today, apart from the headache. I just didn't want to listen to their incessant chatter when I couldn't think straight. Hell I never wanted to listen to their incessant chatter.

I took a long hot shower before swallowing a couple of aspirin. I didn't really put much effort into my appearance. I pulled my hair back into a messy ponytail and threw on some black skinnies and a black hoodie, with wings on the back. I finished off the dismal outfit with a pair of ratty black converse which Angel had threatened to throw away more than once.

I walked out my door pretty early and made my way over to next door. I doubted the girl's were up yet but Iggy had started waking up a bit earlier to cook breakfast. I knocked on the door softly, too exhausted to be in a bad mood.

Iggy opened the door and looked at me warily. I sighed and pushed past him to the kitchen. I slumped on a bench and groaned as my headache came back. I heard Iggy come into the kitchen and felt his eyes on me.

"Coffee?" he asked and I mumbled something that was probably a yes. He grabbed a mug and poured me a cup of hot coffee which I downed quickly. The smell of pancakes came from the stove but instead of feeling hungry I just felt nauseous.

"Can you go wake up Fang?" Iggy asked quietly. "Breakfast is ready."

I nodded and slowly made my way up the stairs and to Fang's door.

Fang POV

A knock on the door penetrated my dream and shook me from dream world. I groaned and heard the door open. I opened my eyes carefully to see Max staring down at me worriedly.

"What's wrong?" She asked reaching out a hand towards my cheek before withdrawing quickly.

"Well," I answered. "A pissed of Max is not fun to fight with."

She sighed. "I'm sorry."

I looked up at her, carefully this time. Dark bags were apparent under her eyes and her face was deathly pale.

"Are you okay?" I asked her. She nodded and turned away. "Breakfast is ready," she murmured and exited my room.

When I got down to the kitchen everyone was eating quickly. Everyone except Max. In fact she looked faintly sick by the sight of the food and I could see the rest of the group cast worried glances her way.

The rest of the day was spent in much the same way. She went from class to class exhaustedly resting her head on the desk in every class room. She didn't even bother to acknowledge the teacher's presence and dozed through each class.

She didn't even eat anything at lunch just stared at her food.

I cornered her before maths class and glared defiantly into her eyes.

"Max! What is wrong?" I asked worriedly.

"'S nothing," she slurred before her knees buckled and she fell into my arms.

**Ooooh Cliffie.**

**Yes I know I am evil. It took you that long to figure it out. I betcha most of you pictured the therapist bit differently, but don't worry, the downfall of ter Borcht will come. Eventually.**

**You know what's surprising. When I wrote this I was actually in a really good mood. Go figure.**

**I'll try and update soon but I can't make any promises.**

**By the way, this is not another cliché bit where Max gets sick. It will be different. I just don't know how. Any ideas are welcome **

**Review**

**BookNerd7**


	7. How to Be Insane

**Hello faithful reviewers and people who can't be stuffed to review but read the fanfiction anyways *cough* I'm not a hypocrite at all *cough*…**

**Sorry it took so long, but I was suffering from writers block.**

**Here are some mentions: Ashara and Tracie my **_**really **_**annoying friends.**

**Oh and for people who like funny Maximum Ride fanfictions like mine, read Darker than Midnight by M1dnite… so funny. Not many chapters at the moment but hilarious.**

**Chapter 7:**

Max POV

I was in a stark white room. Fluorescent lights flickered overhead and the room looked a little worse for wear, filled with stale air, as if it had been empty for a long time. As far as I could tell there was no furniture in the room, apart from the steel table I was tied down to. I tried to move an arm experimentally but it was no use. I was tied down too well.

A familiar panic rose up inside of me. If there was one thing I hated, it was being utterly confined. A noise from the corner of the room, out of my sight, attracted my attention, but no matter how much I strained, I couldn't move from the bonds.

I closed my eyes and tried to calm myself down. What was the last thing I remembered? I remembered being at school, not feeling very well, and then… Fang cornered me in the maths corridor… asked me what was wrong… then it was a blank.

I probably had collapsed… but why was the real question.

A chuckle from the end of the room distracted me from my musings. I froze, the hairs on the back of my neck standing on end… I knew that chuckle.

I gently turned my head to its limit and there was Fang. Sitting in a chair next to me. I could've sworn that he wasn't there a minute ago. Damn Fang and his awesome ninja skills.

"Fang," I said hoarsely, my throat sore from no use. "Where am I? What's happening?"

He chuckled darkly again, and for a second I swear I saw a glint of red in my eyes. But then it was gone.

"Why Max, you really don't need to know where you are. And as to what's happening… well you'll find out soon enough."

My forehead furrowed in confusion. I could feel a pounding headache coming on, but I ignored it.

"What do you mean Fang? Get me out of here." I nearly shouted.

"Oh, poor naïve Max, I'm afraid I can't do that. You see, if I let you out, you would escape, and that wouldn't be good for my master."

My breath hitched and I looked up at Fang. It was still hard to see him properly, but I could just make out his face.

"M…m…master?" I asked, my voice quavering.

"You'll find out soon enough, and then the world will be rid of you and you're family." He whispered darkly and suddenly he was gone.

Tears pricked in my eyes and I let them fall. They had my family. The only people I had left.

The lights went out and for a second I was submerged in complete darkness, and then they turned back on. But instead of the empty room, seven people surrounded me. Fang, Iggy, Nudge, Lissa, Brigid and… Dr. Ter Borcht.

"Well hello Max," he said. "I'm afraid it's time to die."

Suddenly they all raised knives, the sharp edges glinting horribly in the flickering lights.

As they stepped towards me, I finally opened my mouth and screamed.

"Max! MAX!" a voice penetrated through my consciousness, nearly inaudible, as I could hear a girl screaming in the background.

I opened my eyes weekly, shying away from the bright lights. It took me a second to realise the screaming was coming from me. I shut my mouth abruptly.

Blurry figures danced at the edge of my vision, and I could hear a faint buzzing noise in my ear. The buzzing suddenly cleared and I could hear voices instead in the background.

"…emotional trauma…severe damage…might be admitted…" I voice said. I blinked a couple of times, and the figures became clearer.

I sat up quickly and was overcome with nausea. A hand gently guided me back down.

"Careful," he said. I looked up at him and recognised his face.

"Get away from me!' I shouted, cowering away from him. I recognised the faces of Iggy and Nudge standing behind him, looking at me worriedly.

"All of you get away!" I shouted again, and I erupted into racking sobs. The buzzing in the background reappeared and I curled up in a foetal position, only just aware of the blanket covering me.

Darkness overcame me and I welcomed it, relishing the numbness that came with it. For a couple of seconds, the world was still there, and then I was gone.

**Yes I know it's short, but it wouldn't have seemed right if I added a bit more.**

**This is kind of a filler chapter, and Fang POV in the next chapter.**

**Please review.**

**Btw. I wrote this whole chapter in science. Yay me. Feel free to point out any mistakes.**

**~BookNerd7~**


	8. How to Worry

**To all the people who faithfully read my fan fiction...I'm sorry. And I honestly have no excuse whatsoever for the massive delay between chapters. But you can forgive me right? Pretty please...**

**I'm kinda at a dilemma with my story... I sort of know what to do and I sort of don't, so any ideas would be very helpful. Oh and by the way, the next chapters might be a bit different, more angsty...**

**God... this chapter might be a bit short because my freaking little sister is Shrieking in my ear. I'm pretty sure she's actually half banshee but for some reason my parents won't let me sell her as a rare exhibit... think of all the books I could have bought.**

**Anyways in each chapter I'm going to recommend a book or series... so here's this one: Seven Ancient Wonders by Matthew Reilly... Absolutely packed with action, good if you like action books and I learnt more history from one book then from a whole year of history at school. Figures.**

**Long author's note I know. **

**Disclaimer: Since I am still broke and James Patterson is probably pretty wealthy... I do not own Maximum Ride. Just this story... Kinda makes you feel crappy doesn't it?**

**Chapter 8: **Life as we know it sucks...

Fang POV

I've learnt a lot about Jeb in the past hours. The fact that he works as a scientist and has to go on tons of business trips. That Ella was actually the result of a one night stand, although she doesn't know. He also had to take a second job for two years straight to support Ella, and the cheques he sent to Max's mom, although she always sent them back. Oh, and that he really didn't want to leave Max's mom, but his company made him, and the fact that he's always hated that Max doesn't like him.

So yeah, all it took to learn more about Max's past is to get her to collapse in the middle of school.

We hadn't taken her to the hospital, since Jeb had put a "If you put Max in a hospital she will kill anyone within a one kilometre radius, two if she breaks a bone" sticker on her file...

So instead we'd just taken her back to her house. Now we were all just sitting on various things in her room, waiting for her to wake up (I got the egg chair, not as comfy when Max isn't sitting in it). The strange thing is, Angel and Gazzy hadn't really seemed that fussed with Max fainting, which is kinda weird.

Jeb came back into her room, he'd walked out ten minutes before muttering something about a phone call.

"Well," he started. "Dr ter Borcht is coming over, he thinks the collapse may have had something to do with her mental condition." Yeh, that made me feel a whole lot better. The other's were sporting similar masks of confusion, apart from the twins. They just nodded like they'd heard it all before. Hmm...

Then we just sat in silence again. For your information, in the room were the twins, Ella, Jeb, Nudge and Iggy. And no, I don't know how those two got out of class but I suspect it might have something to do with the ominous black marks on his hands.

Once, Iggy got up and said something about getting a snack. He sat right back down when he saw Ella's face. Her evil eye could almost rival Max's. Well, not really.

A knock on the door startled us. Jeb got up to get it a moment later, murmuring voices were heard in the hall. Then Jeb came back up and he was followed by a man who I disliked immediately. I didn't really notice his appearance, all I saw was the hungry and predatorial look that dominated his face when he laid eyes on Max.

"Everyone, this is Dr ter Borcht, Max's therapist. Doctor, these are Max's friends," introduced Jeb.

Borcht just looked at us as if surveying interesting bugs, and once again I felt the urge to punch him.

"Interesting," he muttered and then walked over to Max. He and Jeb started discussing details and were soon theorising the cause of this. Suddenly, Gazzy looked up at Borcht, and nodded at Angel. They walked over and Gazzy tugged at Borcht's shirt, grabbing his attention. He leaned down and then the twins both whispered something in his ear. He answered them quietly and soon they were having a hushed discussion, to low to be able to hear. Jeb looked at them curiously then shrugged and walked over to a nearby chair. Pshh, and I though scientists were supposed to be curious people.

Borcht stood up. He then proceeded to walk over to Max, and 'examine' her. It didn't escape my attention that his hands lingered on some areas. I fought back the growl rising up in my throat.

He had a curious look on his face and then beckoned over to Jeb. Once again, a hushed, inaudible conversation took place in the room. I rolled my eyes.

Then my attention shifted away from them to Max, who had suddenly started to claw at her sheets, and cower away from something in her mind. We all looked over at her worriedly. She continued moving and then she started muttering, even in her dream it was obvious she was absolutely terrified.

"D-don't touch my family!" she muttered and other words soon followed, although they were undecipherable. Then suddenly, she started screaming. It was a terrible scream, the scream of someone scared beyond recognition. Ella walked over to her and tried to calm her down, but it was obviously not working.

"Max!" she shouted. "MAX!" This time it seemed to work and Max's eyes opened blinking in the bright light. She stopped screaming abruptly, and now I could hear Jeb and Borcht properly, who had raised their voices to be heard to one another.

"Max is obviously suffering from intense emotional trauma, and there's a chance there will be severe damage to her mental health. According to her siblings, Max was often taken to therapists and even collapsed just like this a couple of times. If the damage is to severe she might have to be admitted to a psychiatric ward."

I blinked a couple of times in shock, Max... Insane?

My attention was brought back to her body though when she sat up suddenly and turned green. I gently guided her back down, so she was on her back. She looked at me as if in a dream state and then her eyes filled with pure terror.

"Get away from me!" she shouted, and caught sight of Nudge and Iggy peering over my shoulder. "All of you get away!" Then she collapsed into sobs. She burrowed underneath her blankets and in seconds I could see she had fallen asleep.

I backed away from her and traded shocked looks with the others. I had never seen Max like this never so...broken. And the thing that saddened me the most was when she saw me, she looked at me as if I was the most terrifying thing on earth.

It was ten o'clock at night when Iggy, Nudge and I finally left. For hours Jeb and Borcht had discussed therapy for Max while we had just sat around their dinner table. I think we were all in shock. I was surprised that we had actually only known her for about a week, because it felt like forever.

That night I didn't sleep a wink. I just stared at the curtained glass door separating me from Max. We didn't go to school the next day either. Just kinda sat around the house, doing nothing and trying to mask our yawns. I know what you're thinking. _What about our parents? _Well, to put it simply... our parents were ass-holes. We basically lived on our own. I haven't actually seen them in over four months. I'm pretty sure they have another house somewhere. The only reason we know they're still alive is because they send massive cheques once a month and occasionally gifts, like my car.

But no matter what you think, living without parents sucks. Like when Nudge has a nightmare and wakes up in the middle of the night, we're the ones who have to comfort her. Iggy and I hate our parents. We ignore their rare letters and even rarer phone calls and the reason we haven't seen them in over four months is also because last time they visited, Iggy blew up their car.

Nudge on the other hand, still likes them. Occasionally, our mom will call her up and arrange a shopping trip with her, and I don't think she realises the truth about our parents. See they always told us the reason we never saw them was because they worked at this job where they only got back home at one at night and woke up at four in the morning. This of course was bull shit. But then again, telling Nudge the truth would probably crush her. So we don't.

So there we were sitting in the lounge watching a rerun of some old show but not really watching when suddenly the phone rang. Iggy went and got it and I could hear his voice coming from the kitchen. He hung up and ran back to the lounge.

"Max is awake!"

**Don't hate me. I needed it to end there. Yet another filler. I know the last bit was crappy. But you got a bit of insight into Fang's and Max's background. Definitely Max in the next chapter. Oh and for the people who don't understand why Max acted the way she did in the last chapter, it's because the one thing that Max really fears is people hurting her family. She wasn't scared of dying, she was afraid she couldn't help them. Add the fact that she was being betrayed...**

**I think I explained that pretty well.**

**I'm not sure when I'll next update, hopefully soon.**

**Until Next time,**

**~BookNerd7~**

**P.S Ashara... finish Hell to Heaven!**


	9. How to Satiate a Sweet Tooth

…**I updated much faster than I thought I would. I was reading fanfics and suddenly, I was inspired. Crap that sounded lame…**

**Anyways, I think I finally have the full story in my head. Because when I actually started the fanfics, I had NO clue what was going to happen (story of my life). I'll try and update faster, since it's the last week of term for us Aussies, and I have two weeks of no school. I think. It better not be one week, or I'll be really pissed.**

**Recommended Book: The Mortal Instruments. Really good series. And tons of good fanfics for when you've finished the books. Not to mention Jace is **_**really **_**hot.**

**Chapter 9: Sweet Tooth**

You know that feeling you get when you slept way to long, and you wake up, and not only are you groggy and your mouth is as dry as the Sahara, but you also can't remember a thing about yesterday.

Well that feeling seems to happen a lot. I sat in my bed (I think?) and just stared into space for over half an hour, trying to recollect my memories. The only thing I remembered though was fragments, including me shouting at Fang and the others, and the terrible dream I'd had.

It took another fifteen minutes before I noticed the glass of water next to me, which I greedily guzzled down my throat and another ten minutes before I noticed someone else in the room. Jeb was sitting across the room in a beige couch that did definitely not belong in my room (have I ever told you how much I hate beige? No. Well, I hate it. A lot.) His eyes were closed and I presumed he was sleeping.

Then he opened his eyes and looked at me in shock. Ok, I get it, I presumed wrong.

"Max?" he asked, staring at me as if I was a bomb about to go off at any second.

I nodded slowly. For some reason I couldn't speak. As if my mouth refused to form words. What I really wanted to say was incredibly rude and probably would have gotten me grounded. Again.

Jeb's face broke out into a huge smile, and he just about ran out of the room. Seconds later I could hear him speaking into a phone. Well I think it was a phone, since I couldn't hear anyone speaking back to him, and I'd hate for someone else in this house to be insane. Yes, I still refused to call it home. Because it wasn't home.

Jeb didn't come back into the room so I just lay back down and stared at the ceiling. Have you ever played that game where you make shapes out of the different shadows on the ceiling? Well, if you do, you're an idiot. Because no matter how hard I tried to make the shadow on the ceiling turn into a bunny, it stubbornly remained a shadow.

Voices shook me out of rant I was having at the shadow. Yes, I mentally rant at things that aren't even real.

I looked around and realised the room was filled with people. Interesting. I hadn't even noticed them come in. Maybe they all suddenly became ninjas. What? It could happen…

I blinked, and suddenly I recognised them. A second before, they had all been strangers. Weird. I could see Iggy, Nudge and Fang all standing in the corner of the room looking at me warily. I ignored them and continued to survey the now familiar faces. Angel and Gazzy were sitting on the floor, playing with toys, seemingly oblivious to everyone else.

And there, in the doorway stood Jeb. But not only Jeb, behind him I could see ter Borcht. My blood boiled but I couldn't move. All I wanted was to get out of this bed and wipe that stupid smug expression off his face. But nothing. I couldn't even open my mouth. And my face remained expressionless.

I struggled against the barriers in my mind, stopping me from killing him. Or speaking. Or moving. Or smiling. Or crying. Or scowling. Or anything that required showing emotion.

Oh crap! I thought. I'm turning into Fang. Stop laughing at me.

Speaking of Fang, I saw him break away from the others and cautiously approach me. I so wanted to say a sarcastic comment there. But no.

He stopped at my bedside and looked at me. Underneath my emotional mask that I couldn't get rid of, I was currently trying to stop myself mentally drool over Fang.

He's so hot! One part of my mind said.

Is this really the time? Asked the other part of my mind.

Totally. He's right there. Perfect for admiring.

But right now, I can't show any emotion or speak. So this really isn't the time.

This is the perfect time. This way he won't be able to know what you're thinking. And smirk that annoying smirk of his. The incredibly hot smirk…

Stop it!

I was distracted from my inner battle by Fang speaking.

"Max?" he asked warily. If I could have, I would have groaned. I mean, out of all the things he could have said. That was just lame.

Unfortunately, I could not respond to the lame comment accordingly. Instead I just stared at him, my face betraying nothing.

He sighed and walked away. I wanted to scream at him. I could see him talking to Iggy and Nudge, occasionally glancing at me. Yeh, 'cause that wasn't a _huge _giveaway.

Jeb walked over to them and said something grimly. They nodded slowly and one by one walked out of the room. Jeb then quietly said the same thing to the twins. They abruptly got up and hurried out.

Now it was just Jeb, Bastard and I. It's my new nickname for him.

The bastard walked over to me, no swaggered over and sat down on a chair which I hadn't noticed was next to me until then.

"So Max…" the bastard drawled and leaned closer. He was so damn lucky I was more or less paralysed.

"Can you hear me?" bastard asked. Even if I had wanted to, I couldn't answer him. In fact, the only thing that I could possibly control in my own body was my eyes. I could move them around and stare at stuff. So helpful. I couldn't even blink on my own.

It was like my whole body was wired to auto pilot. It breathed and blinked on its own but apart from that, it didn't need to do anything else. So it didn't. No matter how hard I tried to find the switch that turned it off.

Bastard was still talking but I tuned him out. I couldn't answer anyways, so what was the point of getting pissed.

I was only half aware of him leaving and Jeb taking his place. For some reason though, instead of all the contempt I usually felt for him, I just felt indifferent, mellow. I know, I was shocked too.

I tuned back in because it seemed like this was probably important.

"Max," he was saying. "I know this is hard for you, what with your parents gone and your home destroyed. But this is a new place. A new life. Perhaps it's time to let go of your past."

He waited, as if expecting an answer, then sighed when he got none. He got up from the chair and walked out of the room and shut the door.

As soon as the door was shut the switch went off and I could move again, although I still couldn't speak. Good thing I was mad enough to have two voices in my head, right?

I got up out of bed and looked at my clothing. I shuddered. I absolutely hated sleeping in my clothes. I went to my door and opened it a crack. Downstairs I could hear Jeb yelling.

"Kids, hurry up, before the mall closes!"

I distantly heard the door open and then the voices of the twins and Ella walking outside. I waited until I heard them drive off before opening the door fully.

I had a long, hot shower and changed into black sweat pants and a grey tank. Then I foraged in the kitchen for food. I was starving. So to stop the growling in my stomach, I found some bread and piled it with all the sweet things I could find. Nutella, icing sugar, maple syrup and some chocolate chips. I put it in the sandwich toaster and when it was done, I had a toasted sandwich with an inch thick filling of hot, sweet goo. I washed it down with whipped cream and milk. What can I say, I had one hell of a sweet tooth.

By the end of this dentist's nightmare I was so full I could barely move. But I cleaned up the kitchen and removed any evidence of me having been there. And stole some snacks to keep in my room in case I got hungry.

I didn't want to be confronted with people again and not be able to move. It was bad enough not being able to speak, even on my own. So if I had to stay away from people, I would. No matter what.

**I know, not that long, and another filler. But it needed to be done.**

**Basically Max's mind has shut down. So she can move, sometimes but she can't talk. And I'm telling you this now because it won't really be explained properly. And no, you can't know the reason yet.**

**And I stole the sugary toasted sandwich from Cherub. Mainly because I have a massive sweet craving at the moment. But unfortunately, I am not allowed anything sugary for the next SIX weeks. **

**I don't know how I'm going to survive either. Next chapter will be up soon. And yes, if you send me chocolate it might come faster.**

**~BookNerd7~**


	10. How to Be More Annoying

**OMG… I updated the next day. I'm so proud of myself. Granted, part of the reason was because I wanted to prove my friends wrong (they said I couldn't handle two stories)… Ok it was the whole reason… Shut up.  
**

**For those who don't know, or didn't even guess, which would make you pretty stupid since I kind of hinted above, I started a new story. It's for Mortal Instruments and is called Make You or Break You. Only one chapter is up at the moment, but I'm updating after this one.**

**Tomorrow I go… Whale Watching! It gets me out of a whole day at school and I get to have fun blowing up the boat *cough cough*, I mean looking for whales…**

**Recommended Book: H.I.V.E – this series is so funny, and I LOVE Wing… And he's mine Tracie!**

**Chapter 10: Operation this-will-probably-end-badly is a go!**

Max POV

The others were up to something. It was so obvious. They had been completely shocked when I had gone to school today (I know right, Hell just froze over. I'm going skiing).

I didn't _want _to go to school but apparently my body didn't care about that. At all. So I spent the whole day at school doing nothing, and not talking either since my voice still didn't work.

The only bright side of the day was when Lissa was really annoying me, my body listened to me and let me punch her. This time I aimed for the nose. I can't wait till she comes to school with one of the thingies on her nose. Knowing her it will probably coordinate with her outfit.

Anyways, back to the others. On the walk home I had lagged behind and watched as they whispered secrets and looked at me every once in a while. I mean, come on, way to be obvious.

Iggy was looking the most suspicious, and when Iggy starts looking shifty, you run. Far away. I've seen the signs on his hands, and heard the stories about how the school has had to replace fifteen classrooms in the last year. And those were only the science ones. Not to mention the time he rigged the coffee machine in the teacher's lounge to explode when it was turned on.

I lay low in my room for a while listening to the muffled voices from downstairs. I was going to sleep with one eye open.

Iggy POV **(A/N YES! I so wanted to do Iggy)**

Max was acting weird. Well, weirder than usual. She didn't go speak or show any emotion whatsoever on her face. It was creepily like Fang.

After school we had decided we needed to stop this. So to do this, we needed to make her show some emotions. And what is the one emotion that is most common for Maxie? Anger obviously.

We all came up with separate plans to do it, one after the other. And I was first.

I hid near her bedroom until I heard her leave it, then snuck in quickly. I easily located her iPod, grabbed it and left a small note in its place. _Come outside _it said.

I rigged the iPod, left it on the front lawn then ran and hid behind a massive bush. I could see the others hiding in various places around the garden. None of us wanted to be in plain sight when it happened.

A couple of minutes later, Max appeared outside. She spotted her iPod on the lawn and for a second I thought I saw a hint of emotion cross over her face, but then it was gone. She walked forward on the grass when suddenly she triggered the trip wire. She fell flat on her face and looked up just in time to see the iPod explode into a million pieces. It was seriously awesome.

Max just stared at the blast zone for a couple of seconds before standing up and going back to the house.

I frowned. Phase one had failed.

Time for Phase two. Nudge.

Nudge POV

It was so totally awesome watching the iPod explode. But also seriously sad. Like, would you like it if 5000 of your favourite songs blew up?

When Max left Iggy looked at me and nodded. I smiled. Time for Phase Two.

Iggy made some chocolate chip cookies, and then, walking past the Max's door and left them in the big linen closet. Sure enough, a couple of seconds later she poked her head out of the door, then ran over to the closet. Soon she was eating the choc chip cookies and that was when the trap was sprung. Ella and Fang grabbed Max and sat her in a chair in the corner then tied her arms and legs down and left. They nodded at me, and left the closet, closing the door behind them.

I came out from where I was hiding and smiled at Max. This would be fun. I took a deep breath.

".GEE! Max, I haven't talked to you in so long. You look so cute in that t-shirt it like totally rocks! We should like go shopping for more clothes this weekend! Ooooh! At that new mall! I heard they have tons of new stores. OMG did you hear that Justin Beiber showed up at a shopping mall in New York and was chased by like a million screaming fans. I so wish I was there. Don't you love Justin Beiber? I like love his song BABY. _My first love broke my heart for the first time,__And I was like__Baby, baby, baby ohhh__Like baby, baby, baby noo__Like baby, baby, baby ohh__I thought youd always be mine mine! _That song is so awesome. The other day I saw the CUTEST little outfit. It was like a mini dress and was all frilly and pink and came with these awesome stilettos. And it was like only a couple of hundred bucks. We should like totally but it for you MAX!"

I continued to ramble on about nothing in particular. But nothing. The only hint of emotion I saw was a flicker in her eyes. But it was probably nothing.

I sighed and opened the door. I saw Gazzy waiting outside.

"Time for phase three."

**I know it was short. I get it. The other phases will be in the next chapter. Didn't you just love the Nudge talk? Oh, btw I hate that *shudder* girl who pretends to be a guy.**

**For the people who are offended by that, well, you're idiots.**

**Ooooh… Inside joke time.**

"**The eagle is ready to fly."**

"**Huh?"**

"**I **_**said **_**the eagle is ready to fly."**

"**What eagle? I don't see any eagles. They better stay away!"**

"**The EAGLE is READY to FLY."**

"**Dude, saying it over and over again isn't helping."**

"**The goddamn bomb is in place!"**

"**Oh. **_**Oh. **_**OH. I get it now."**

"**Good. Now give me the apple."**

"**I don't have any apples."**

"**GIVE ME THE APPLE."**

"**I still don't have any apples. The place over there might though."**

"**Give me the CONTROLLER!" **

"**Well why didn't you just say so?"**

**Total inside joke. Don't worry if you don't get it. I'll try and update as soon as possible.**

**~BookNerd7~**


	11. How to Kiss Your Best Friend

**Ciao peoples… I know it took ages to update but I didn't feel like writing. At all. And now my holidays are over… fun. **

**If this chapter is crappy, get over it. Yes I'm in a bitchy mood.**

**Recommended Book: Alex Rider (Alex Rider is seriously hot…)**

**Oh and Ashara, you need to bring Bleach to school… pretty please?**

**Chapter 11: How to kill your best friends…**

Max POV

I will kill my friends. Seriously. I'm going to lock them up in a tiny enclosed room then starve them for a couple days in a high temperature. Then, I'm going to throw in a liquid nitrogen grenade into the room (did you know they basically make the body explode… so cool). Yes I know I'm violent. But they deserve it. Definitely. Iggy BLEW up my iPod. Then they locked me up with Nudge for an HOUR. Come on.

I know what you're saying. They're doing it because they care about you and want to drag you out of this zombie state. I really don't care. I had 4,982 songs on that iPod. It took me six months to build up that collection. Not only that but it was engraved, and it was a gift from my Mum. So yes I was pissed at them.

When I finally gain control of my body I'm going to have so much fun getting revenge on them _(cue evil laugh)._

Now that little rant is over I'm going to start another. Get this. Some lame kid at my school is hosting a party since his parents are out of town (cliché right, next the parents will come early… I'm seen the scenario on every single soap ever). Now if that wasn't bad enough, Nudge has decided, and the others agreed, that they would be attending this party… and making me come with. I don't know if this is part of their scheme to get me angry enough so I explode, but trust me… they came close to their goal.

So Nudge and Ella went on about how cool this was going to be while Angel and Gazzy whined about how they weren't allowed to go. Trust me, four girls and the Gasman stuffed into my room is not going to end well. And it didn't. I didn't even try to bother screaming at him. Instead I had the longest shower of my life. I was in their long after the water had run cold.

I got dressed in plain black clothes and was about to open the door when I heard a giggle from outside. Now this wasn't 'oh that is so funny' giggle, this was a devious and evil giggle… and it came from Gazzy's mouth. I automatically decided to not enter my room for the next six months without a gas mask.

I opened the door and walked out slowly keeping a lookout for anything suspicious. It didn't really work since I got a bucketful of slime on my head anyways. It seemed Gazzy had rigged a bucket up on the bathroom door. Cliché, yes, but effective nonetheless. Inside I was fuming as Nudge and Gazzy came out of their hiding places and grinned cheekily, but my face remained expressionless as I walked back into the bathroom to have a cold shower, since all the hot water had gone. Great.

I was surprised to find tears falling down my face as I walked back to the shower. I couldn't make a sound, or even move how I wanted. I was essentially a doll. For the first time I wondered if this was something unrelated to the past breakdowns. I had at least been kinda able to talk then and I could move freely. This was completely new. Even the twins were getting worried. They knew about the past break downs but nothing was like this. I had no proper free will. And it scared me.

Nudge was driving me insane. Really insane. She was doing my _makeup. _And Ella was doing my hair. Whilst Angel looked for clothes in my closet. Well I think. I couldn't really hear anything. Or see anything for that matter. I had my eyes closed tightly and I was listening to an iPod. Whose iPod you ask? Well, it was Fang's. I borrowed it. Well, when I say borrowed I really mean steal but still, he won't mind. Much. He had good music at least.

Someone suddenly brutally yanked the earphones out of my ears. I opened my eyes to see Nudge looming over me. Scary sight,

"How do you listen to this Max?" she practically yelled. "It's like, deafening."

I managed a slight shrug and Nudge frowned.

"Aren't you going to look in the mirror then? We practically spent the entire afternoon on you."

I turned my head and looked in the mirror and gasped. I looked amazing. Well… as amazing as I can look. My eyes were smoky and made my brown eyes pop, while my lips were perfectly lined in a light reddish colour. All the makeup was perfect, and my hair was down, set in smooth waves. I didn't look like me.

I smiled and Ella was positively bursting with excitement.

"MAAaaaxxxx…." She whined. "You have to look at the outfit we picked out for you."

I turned towards the bed, before backing away. Apparently this doesn't work on these three so ten minutes later I was standing in front of my mirror wondering who the girl impersonating me was.

The _dress _was black and strapless with red embroidery over the waistline. It was short but not as short as some of the people's dresses were sure to be. Nudge had somehow wrangled me into six inch black leather pumps that absolutely had to go with the dress apparently. I had a red clutch and a black choker thing. I looked gorgeous according to Angel.

Now when they got these clothes is beyond me. And I shuddered to think what the price was. Half an hour later the others had joined me, although Angel looked a little forlorn to be left out. Ella was wearing a blue and purple sequined tank dress with indigo heels and Nudge looked way older in her little black dress with a purplish pink ribbon tied around it and another pair of heels.

Now I thought this was a bit much for some party at a kid's house but apparently this was a bit more than that. He was having a full on cocktail party and it was black tie. Now everyone was basically thinking how elegant and refined the party would be. All I thought was that I wanted to be out before the hard liquor was snuck in.

We made our grand entrance downstairs (for some strange reason) where the guys were waiting. I was glad Fang was coming and not for the reasons you're thinking of. At all. Definitely not. And no I'm not getting defensive.

Iggy's eyes practically popped out at the sight of Ella. I smiled inwardly; it was obvious that they had a thing for each other.

We drove to the party in Fang's car. I couldn't wait till I got a car. Or even better a motorbike. I had gotten my licence ages ago but we had never had enough money for it. Well… my birthday is coming up…

We finally got to the kid's place which was a bloody mansion set in massive grounds. He was obviously rich. The party was already in full swing although teens were still pouring in. As we got out of the car I heard something large smash. And no, I was not laughing at how the guy's parents would react when they came back.

We walked in and music assaulted my ears. And not good music either. I was definitely going to kill my friends. Painfully. Preferably `involving explosives, if I ever got control back.

Most of the people there I didn't recognise although a couple of people seemed familiar. I was just planning my escape route when a flash of red pushed through the crowd.

Ah, what I wouldn't give to insult her. Maybe I'll be able to punch her again…

"Here comes the queen of the sluts now," I heard Iggy remark to Fang in a stage whisper. The others laughed, well Fang smirked, but I still remained emotionless. Seriously if I can never bitch at someone again I will kill myself… or someone else.

Lissa appeared in front of our group, which for some reason was in a sort of crescent formation with me facing her. Fun.

"Well well well," she sneered. "Look who showed up. Still mute are you Max?"

Instead of being insulted, I was practically splitting my sides. Her nose was bandaged in a pink thing and her voice came out all nasally. True to form, she had chosen the sluttiest outfit possible. She was dressed in a horrid pink dress which looked more like a t shirt. It short, really short and the neckline plunged embarrassingly, while the sides were cut out. She wobbled around in ten inch high heels and I could tell she'd already had a bit too much to drink.

For some strange reason I my throat opened and I could tell I would be able to talk. I fixed my face in a look of utter contempt, and countered her pathetic insult.

"Wow Lissa! I didn't think that dress could get any trashier. Congrats on proving me wrong." I raised my eyebrow as she processed the insult and her face got redder and redder. Apparently though she was unable to come up with a comeback so she just humphed in annoyance and strode away. Well, tried to, she kept on stumbling in the ridiculous heels.

I turned to the others and smirked. They were in shock, staring at me in surprise. Iggy's mouth was hanging open and even Fang had a look of shock on his face. Kinda.

'What?" I asked.

"You… Uh… Lissa… What?" Nudge finally ended.

"Wow, Nudge. I think that's the least I've ever heard you say." I remarked.

Fang shook his head and looked at me. My eyes met his, and for a second I saw a flash of a hidden emotion before it was gone.

"C'mon," he whispered. 'Let's get away from these guys."

I smiled up at him and let him lead me outside, where it was a bit quieter, leaving the others, their mouths still hanging open.

I was still revelling in the feeling of having my freedom back. It was something we usually took for granted but right now it was the greatest thing in my life. Well, apart from the feeling of Fang's hand on my back. Wait. Shut up Max!

My forehead furrowed in frustration as we made our way to a massive tree at the end of the backyard. Let me tell you, it took ages to get there. This kid's place was freaking huge!

I sat down in the hollow of the roots and closed my eyes. I hated how my dress rode up and frantically pulled it down. Not that it helped much. The dress was still freaking short. Fang settled down next to me, and I could feel his eyes on me in the minutes that followed.

Finally, I relented. "What?" I asked my voice sharp.

"I was just wondering what changed?" Fang asked his voice melodious to my ears. I stared into his eyes, getting lost in the inky depths… _BAD MA_X! I scolded myself. _You're starting to sound like a bad romance novel._ That snapped me out of my trance and I hurried to answer his question. Well, kinda. I sort just looked at him questioningly.

'Well," he explained. "For days you haven't' been able to speak. Hell, you haven't' even showed any emotion. So I just want to know, what changed?"

I thought about it for a couple of seconds before answering.

"I'm not sure. It wasn't like it was my choice to be like that. Really, do you think I would be wearing this if it was?" I gestured to my dress. "It was like when we finally walked in here this sort of fog thing lifted and I was finally free to do whatever I wanted." Ok, it was a lame explanation. But it was also true.

Fang thought about for a bit for looking at me, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "So, the first thing you did with your freedom was diss Lissa?'

I smiled. A real smile this time. "Hell yeah."

He smirked and lay down on the roots. I did the same. It was surprisingly comfortable. I looked up at the sky with a wistful sigh. I hadn't had the flying dream in ages and I missed it. It had always been my dream to fly, not like in a tin can but just me, with wings.

"What are you thinking about?" Fang asked me. I wondered how long he had been looking at me, and despite myself I blushed. "Nothing much. I was just thinking about this dream where I could fly. How awesome would that be?"

He nodded and looked up at the moon. I took the chance to study him. His face didn't look like an emotionless mask. Instead he looked peaceful and his eyes for once were open and unguarded. His hair was messy and I appreciated the fact that he was wearing a tux. It made him look really hot, although I still preferred him in ratty jeans and t shirts. I shook my head again. _Stop it!_

My hair kept falling into my eyes despite my best efforts and I huffed in annoyance. "I hate this hair. It always gets in the way. I wish it was shorter." I sighed in frustration. Suddenly Fang was leaning over me, my hair in his hands. My breath hitched as I looked into his smouldering eyes. "I love your hair," he whispered and before I knew it he was kissing me.

His lips perfectly moulded to mine and I kissed back automatically. My hands made their way up to his neck, pulling him closer. He responded by opening his lips slightly and I willingly obliged. After what seemed like ages we pulled away from each other panting, and I looked at him, my eyes widening in shock. _I had just _kissed _Fang! _This was big. Too big. I couldn't handle it at the moment. A small part of me wanted to stay with him (okay, a big part) but I squashed it down. I stood up abruptly and muttered something about having to leave before rushing away. I didn't look back but I could feel his eyes on me the entire way, and something told me they were filled with sadness.

**DON'T KILL ME! It needed to happen. I think that was pretty crappy make out scene cut it was my first one so shut up. I know her running away is pretty cliché, but then again it's for a good reason. Max's life is never going to be easy and it's my job as a fan fiction writer to make it as hellish as possible.**

**Ooooh… and I really love bitchy Max. So much better than sad or emotionless Max. And I'm totally not cackling in laughter at what Max is going to do to the others in revenge… definitely not.**

**Anyways all shall be explained in the next couple of chapters. Probably. Oh and I have no clue when I'll update. Might be tomorrow might be in a month. **

**Till then, **

**~BookNerd7~**


	12. Author's Note

**Hey Guys. I know that you know all hate me because this is an author's note not a chapter and I got you all excited for no reason. But this is important:**

**This story is officially on hiatus. I will probably start it up sometime next year but at the moment I'm just not liking what I'm writing. I might even rewrite some chapters. **

**You have my permission to be as bitchy as you want in the comments. I deserve it. See you next year!**

**P.S I might be writing some one-shots soon. So don't give up on my writing skills completely. **


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